Method and apparatus for forming frozen beverage blocks

ABSTRACT

A method or apparatus for forming frozen beverage blocks from a liquid beverage. The method may include introducing a beverage into a beverage receiving reservoir. Next, the beverage may flow from the beverage receiving reservoir into a holding tank. The flow from the beverage receiving reservoir into the holding tank may be done entirely via gravity. Upon the temperature of the beverage located within the holding tank being measured at or below a predetermined lower threshold temperature, the beverage may be permitted to flow from the holding tank into a cool beverage reservoir of a freezing subsystem. The freezing subsystem may be configured to convert the beverage from a liquid into frozen beverage blocks.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 16/367,972, filed Mar. 28, 2019, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,297,976,issued Apr. 12, 2022, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/582,942, filed May 1, 2017, now abandoned, whichclaims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.62/331,250, filed May 3, 2016, now expired, the entireties of which arehereby incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Today, coffee shops serve many different types of iced coffee beverages.This is generally achieved by pouring hot coffee into a cup that ispre-filled with ice cubes or pouring ice cubes into a cup that ispre-filled with hot coffee. However, this solution results in the icedcoffee product being diluted, thereby negatively affecting the flavorand taste of the iced coffee beverage. A current option for the coffeeshop to avoid dilution of its iced coffee products is to brew coffee,manually pour the brewed coffee into an ice cube tray, and then placethe loaded ice cube tray into a freezer for freezing. However, this is atime consuming process and if the coffee shop employee forgets toinitiate the process, the coffee shop will be left without any availablecoffee ice cubes. Thus, a need exists for a solution to the above-notedproblem.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a method of forming frozen beverageblocks from a liquid beverage. The method may include introducing abeverage into a hot beverage reservoir of a beverage receiving subsystemto initiate the process. Next, the beverage may flow from the hotbeverage reservoir of the beverage receiving subsystem into a coolingsubsystem. The flow from the hot beverage reservoir into the coolingsubsystem and also through the cooling subsystem may be done entirelyvia gravity. Cool air may be blown across the cooling subsystem to coolthe beverage as the beverage flows through the cooling subsystem. Uponthe temperature of the beverage being measured at or below apredetermined lower threshold temperature, the beverage may be permittedto flow, via gravity, from the cooling subsystem into a cool beveragereservoir of a freezing subsystem. The freezing subsystem may beconfigured to convert the beverage from a liquid into frozen beverageblocks.

In one embodiment, the invention may be an integrated apparatus forbrewing and cooling a beverage, the integrated apparatus comprising: ahot water supply subsystem configured to heat water to form hot water; abrewing subsystem configured to receive and mix the hot water generatedby the hot water supply subsystem with a beverage additive to form a hotbeverage; a cooling subsystem configured to receive the hot beveragegenerated by the brewing sub-system, cool the hot beverage to form acooled beverage, and discharge the cooled beverage to a cool beveragereservoir of a freezing subsystem; and wherein liquid flow of the hotwater, the hot beverage, and the cooled beverage along a primarybeverage processing flow path from the hot water supply subsystem to thecool beverage reservoir of the freezing subsystem is gravity driven.

In another embodiment, the invention may be an integrated apparatus forbrewing and cooling a beverage, the integrated apparatus comprising: ahot water supply subsystem configured to heat water to form hot water,the hot water supply system comprising a hot water outlet at a firstelevation; a brewing subsystem configured to receive and mix the hotwater generated by the hot water supply subsystem with a beverageadditive to form a hot beverage, the brewing subsystem comprising a hotwater inlet at a second elevation that is less than the first elevation,and a hot beverage outlet that is at a third elevation that is less thanthe second elevation; a cooling subsystem configured to receive the hotbeverage generated by the brewing sub-system and cool the hot beverageto form a cooled beverage, the cooling subsystem comprising a hotbeverage inlet located at a fourth elevation that is less than the thirdelevation, and cooled beverage outlet that is located a fifth elevationthat is less than the fourth elevation.

In still another embodiment, the invention may be an integratedapparatus for brewing and cooling a beverage, the integrated apparatuscomprising: a first housing enclosing: a hot water supply subsystem; abrewing subsystem configured to receive and mix hot water generated bythe hot water supply subsystem with a beverage additive to form a hotbeverage; a cooling subsystem configured to receive the hot beveragegenerated by the brewing sub-system and cool the hot beverage to form acooled beverage; and a second housing, the first housing positioned atopthe second housing, the second housing enclosing: a freezing subsystemconfigured to freeze the cooled beverage generated by the coolingsubsystem to form a frozen beverage and discharge the frozen beverage asa plurality of frozen beverage cubes.

In yet another embodiment, the invention may be a method of brewing andcooling a beverage comprising: a) heating water in a first portion of abeverage processing flow path to form hot water; b) gravity flowing thehot water generated in the first portion of the beverage processing flowpath through a second portion of the beverage processing flow path, andintroducing an additive into the hot water while the hot water isflowing through the second portion of the beverage processing flow path,thereby forming a hot beverage; c) gravity flowing the hot beverage fromthe second portion of the beverage processing flow path into a thirdportion of the beverage processing flow path, and cooling the hotbeverage while in the third portion of the beverage processing flowpath, thereby forming a cooled beverage; and d) gravity flowing thecooled beverage from the third portion of the beverage processing flowpath into a freezing subsystem.

In a further embodiment, the invention may be an integrated apparatusfor brewing and cooling a beverage, the integrated apparatus comprising:a hot water supply subsystem configured to heat water to form hot water;a brewing subsystem configured to receive and mix the hot watergenerated by the hot water supply subsystem with a beverage additive toform a hot beverage; a heat exchanger configured to receive the hotbeverage generated by the brewing sub-system and cool the hot beverageto form a cooled beverage; and an air flow generator configured togenerate a cooling air flow across the outer surfaces of the heatexchanger.

In a still further embodiment, the invention may be an integratedapparatus for brewing and cooling a beverage, the integrated apparatuscomprising: a first housing: a hot water supply subsystem located withinthe first housing and configured to heat water to form hot water; abrewing subsystem located within the first housing and configured toreceive and mix the hot water generated by the hot water supplysubsystem with a beverage additive to form a hot beverage, the brewingsubsystem located below the hot water supply subsystem; and a coolingsubsystem located within the first housing and configured to receive thehot beverage generated by the brewing sub-system, cool the hot beverageto form a cooled beverage, and discharge the cooled beverage to a coolbeverage reservoir of a freezing subsystem, the cooling subsystemlocated below the brewing subsystem.

In one aspect, the invention may be a method of forming frozen beverageblocks comprising: a) introducing a beverage into a hot beveragereservoir of a beverage receiving subsystem; b) flowing the beverage,solely via gravity, from the hot beverage reservoir of the beveragereceiving subsystem into a cooling subsystem and blowing cooling airacross the cooling subsystem to cool the beverage as the beverage flowsthrough the cooling subsystem, wherein the beverage is prevented fromexiting the cooling subsystem until a temperature of the beverage ismeasured to be at or below a predetermined lower threshold temperature;c) upon the temperature of the beverage being measured at or below thepredetermined lower threshold temperature, allowing the beverage toflow, solely via gravity, from the cooling subsystem into a coolbeverage reservoir of a freezing subsystem; and d) forming frozenbeverage blocks from the beverage in the freezing subsystem.

In another aspect, the invention may be a method of forming frozenbeverage blocks comprising: a) introducing a beverage into a hotbeverage reservoir of a beverage receiving subsystem; b) flowing thebeverage from the hot beverage reservoir of the beverage receivingsubsystem into a cooling tube of a cooling subsystem while cooling airis blowing across the cooling tube of the cooling subsystem; c) flowingthe beverage from the cooling tube of the cooling subsystem into achiller tank of the cooling subsystem and holding the beverage in thechiller tank of the cooling subsystem while the cooling air is blowingacross the chiller tank of the cooling subsystem; d) measuring atemperature of the beverage in the chiller tank of the cooling subsystemusing a temperature sensor that is operably coupled to a controller andpreventing the beverage from exiting the chiller tank until thetemperature of the beverage is at or below a predetermined lowerthreshold temperature; e) upon the temperature of the beverage reachingthe predetermined lower threshold temperature, the controller opening avalve that is downstream of the chiller tank so that the beverage flowsfrom the chiller tank of the cooling subsystem into a cool beveragereservoir of a freezing subsystem; and f) wherein the freezing subsystemis configured to: (1) freeze the beverage to form a frozen beverage; and(2) discharge the frozen beverage as a plurality of frozen beverageblocks.

In a further aspect, the invention may be a method of forming frozencoffee blocks comprising: introducing coffee into a hot beveragereservoir; flowing the coffee from the hot beverage reservoir into andthrough a cooling tube that defines a serpentine-shaped flow path andblowing air across the cooling tube to cool the coffee while the coffeeflows through the cooling tube; flowing the coffee from the cooling tubeinto a cavity of a chiller tank and blowing air across the chiller tankto cool the coffee while the coffee is held in the cavity of the chillertank; measuring a temperature of the coffee that is in the cavity of thechiller tank using a temperature sensor that is operably coupled to acontroller, wherein the coffee is prevented from exiting the chillertank until a temperature of the coffee in the cavity of the chiller tankis measured to be at or below a predetermined lower thresholdtemperature; upon the temperature of the coffee in the cavity of thechiller tank being measured to be at or below the predetermined lowerthreshold temperature, the controller opening a valve to allow thecoffee to flow from the cavity of the chiller tank into a cool beveragereservoir of a freezing subsystem; and wherein the freezing subsystem isconfigured to freeze the coffee to form frozen coffee blocks.

Further areas of applicability of the present invention will becomeapparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It shouldbe understood that the detailed description and specific examples, whileindicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended forpurposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope ofthe invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will become more fully understood from thedetailed description and the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a fluid circuit schematic of an integrated apparatus forbrewing and cooling a beverage in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of an integrated apparatus forbrewing and cooling a beverage in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention, the integrated apparatus including a first housingpositioned atop a second housing;

FIG. 3 is a partially cut-away front perspective view of the integratedapparatus of FIG. 2 illustrating the subsystems and components enclosedwithin both of the first and second housings;

FIG. 4 is a partially cut-away rear perspective view of the integratedapparatus of FIG. 2 illustrating the subsystems and components enclosedwithin both of the first and second housings;

FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the first housing of theintegrated apparatus of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a rear perspective view of the first housing of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a top view of the first housing of FIG. 5 with a cover of awater tank in an open position;

FIG. 8A is a close-up view of area VIII of FIG. 2 illustrating a controlpanel on the first housing with a mixing apparatus positioned in abrewing chamber;

FIG. 8B is the close-up view of FIG. 8A with the mixing apparatusremoved from the brewing chamber;

FIG. 9 is a partially cut-away view of the first housing of FIG. 2 inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a partially cut-away view of the first housing of FIG. 2 inaccordance with an alternative embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is the partially cut-away view of FIG. 9 with a top portion of aheat exchanger removed;

FIG. 12 is the partially cut-away view of FIG. 11 with the top of theheat exchanger removed in accordance with an alternative embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 13 is an exploded view of the heat exchanger of FIG. 12 inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 14 is a partially cut-away view of the second housing of theintegrated apparatus of FIG. 2;

FIG. 15 is a front perspective view of an integrated apparatus forforming frozen beverage blocks from a beverage in accordance withanother embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 15A is a close-up view of area XVA of FIG. 15;

FIG. 16 is a partially cut-away front perspective view of the integratedapparatus of FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a partially cut-away rear perspective view of the integratedapparatus of FIG. 15;

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of a cooling subsystem of the integratedapparatus of FIG. 15 including a cooling tube and a chiller tank;

FIG. 19 is a front view of the cooling subsystem of FIG. 18;

FIG. 20 is a side view of the cooling subsystem of FIG. 19;

FIG. 21 is a close-up perspective view of portions of a freezingsubsystem of the integrated apparatus.

FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XXII-XXII of FIG. 21;

FIG. 23 is a close-up view of a portion of a freezing subsystem of theintegrated apparatus of FIG. 15 during operation;

FIG. 24 is a fluid circuit schematic of the integrated apparatus of FIG.15; and

FIG. 25 is a block diagram of the processing sequence during operationof the integrated apparatus of FIG. 15.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following description of the preferred embodiment(s) is merelyexemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the invention,its application, or uses.

The description of illustrative embodiments according to principles ofthe present invention is intended to be read in connection with theaccompanying drawings, which are to be considered part of the entirewritten description. In the description of embodiments of the inventiondisclosed herein, any reference to direction or orientation is merelyintended for convenience of description and is not intended in any wayto limit the scope of the present invention. Relative terms such as“lower,” “upper,” “horizontal,” “vertical,” “above,” “below,” “up,”“down,” “top” and “bottom” as well as derivatives thereof (e.g.,“horizontally,” “downwardly,” “upwardly,” etc.) should be construed torefer to the orientation as then described or as shown in the drawingunder discussion. These relative terms are for convenience ofdescription only and do not require that the apparatus be constructed oroperated in a particular orientation unless explicitly indicated assuch. Terms such as “attached,” “affixed,” “connected,” “coupled,”“interconnected,” and similar refer to a relationship wherein structuresare secured or attached to one another either directly or indirectlythrough intervening structures, as well as both movable or rigidattachments or relationships, unless expressly described otherwise.Moreover, the features and benefits of the invention are illustrated byreference to the exemplified embodiments. Accordingly, the inventionexpressly should not be limited to such exemplary embodimentsillustrating some possible non-limiting combination of features that mayexist alone or in other combinations of features; the scope of theinvention being defined by the claims appended hereto.

Referring to FIGS. 1-4 concurrently, an integrated apparatus for brewingand cooling a beverage (hereinafter “the integrated apparatus”) 100 willbe described in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.FIG. 1 illustrates a fluid flow and circuit schematic 500 of theintegrated apparatus 100, FIG. 2 illustrates an exterior of theintegrated apparatus 100, and FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate partial cut-awayviews of the integrated apparatus 100 (with panels of the housing of theintegrated apparatus 100 removed) so that the internal components arevisible. In general terms, the integrated brewing and cooling apparatus100 is configured to brew a hot beverage, cool the hot beverage toapproximately room temperature thereby forming a cooled beverage, andthen freeze the cooled beverage to form a frozen beverage that can bedischarged as a plurality of frozen beverage cubes. In certainembodiments, the beverage is coffee, although the invention is not to beso limited in all embodiments and it is possible that the beverage maybe other types of drinkable liquids, particularly those that areinitially brewed in a heated state such as tea, although other drinkableliquids may also be included within the scope of the invention as setforth herein even if not initially brewed in a heated state. Thus, theintegrated apparatus 100 described herein brews or otherwise generates ahot beverage from hot water and then creates ice cubes from the hotwater automatically and without user input other than to initiate abrewing cycle.

The integrated apparatus 100 generally comprises a hot water supplysubsystem 110 that is configured to heat water to form hot water, abrewing subsystem 130 that is configured to receive and mix the hotwater generated by the hot water supply subsystem 110 with a beverageadditive (such as, for example without limitation, ground coffee beans,tea leaves, or the like) to form a hot beverage, a cooling subsystem 150configured to receive the hot beverage generated by the brewingsub-system and cool the hot beverage to form a cooled beverage, and afreezing subsystem 170 configured to freeze the cooled beverage to forma frozen beverage, which may be in the form of frozen beverage cubesthat can be added to a cup that is used for drinking. As discussed inmore detail below, the freezing subsystem 170 comprises a cool beveragereservoir 171 for storing the cooled beverage discharged from thecooling subsystem 150 and a beverage ice maker 172. As will be discussedherein, in the exemplified embodiment the entirety of the liquid flowof: (1) the hot water from the hot water supply subsystem 110 to thebrewing subsystem 130; (2) the hot beverage from the brewing subsystem130 to the cooling subsystem 150; and (3) the cooled beverage from thecooling subsystem 150 to the cool beverage reservoir of the freezingsubsystem 170 is gravity driven and is achieved without the use of anypumps or pressurization of the liquid to force its flow. Stated anotherway, the integrated apparatus 100 is free of any pumps that force liquidflow from the hot water supply subsystem 110 to the freezing subsystem170. Furthermore, this process takes place without user interventionautomatically once the brewing process begins. Thus, solely by gravitythe liquid moves from the hot water supply subsystem 110 all the wayinto the freezing subsystem 170 as various valves are opened and closed.There may be one or more pumps used in the freezing subsystem 170, butupstream of the freezing subsystem 170 no pumps are included in thesystem or apparatus.

The liquid flows from the hot water supply subsystem 110 to the freezingsubsystem 170 along a primary beverage processing flow path 101 of theintegrated apparatus 100. The entirety of the liquid flow along theprimary beverage processing flow path 101 is gravity driven. The hotwater supply subsystem 110 is configured to heat water (or anotherliquid) in a first portion 102 of the primary beverage processing flowpath 101 to form the hot water. The brewing subsystem 130 is configuredto introduce an additive (i.e., ground coffee beans, tea leaves, or thelike) into the hot water in a second portion 103 of the primary beverageprocessing flow path 101 to form the hot beverage. The cooling subsystem150 is configured to cool the hot water in a third portion 104 of theprimary beverage processing flow path 101 to form the cooled beverage.The hot water generated in the first portion 102 of the primary beverageprocessing flow path 101 flows solely via gravity into the secondportion 103 of the primary beverage processing flow path 101. The hotbeverage generated in the second portion 103 of the primary beverageprocessing flow path 101 flows solely via gravity into the third portion103 of the primary beverage processing flow path 101. The cooledbeverage generated in the third portion 103 of the primary beverageprocessing flow path 101 flows solely via gravity into the freezingsubsystem 170.

Still referring to FIGS. 1-4 concurrently, in the exemplified embodimentthe integrated apparatus 100 comprises a first housing 200 and a secondhousing 300. The hot water supply subsystem 110, the brewing subsystem130, and the cooling subsystem 150 are located within the first housing200 while the freezing subsystem 170 including the cool beveragereservoir 171, the beverage ice maker 172, and a freezer compartment 173is located within the second housing 300. Thus, all of the componentsfor brewing and cooling the beverage (i.e., coffee) are provided in thefirst housing 200 while all of the components for freezing the beverage(i.e., coffee) into beverage ice cubes are provided in the secondhousing 300. In the exemplified embodiment, the first housing 200 ispositioned atop the second housing 300. The first and second housings200, 300 are distinct from one another although the components heldwithin the first and second housings 200, 300 are fluidly coupledtogether so that the fluid can flow from the cooling subsystem 150within the first housing 200 into the freezing subsystem 170 within thesecond housing 300.

Each of the first and second housings 200, 300 may be formed fromseveral panels that are formed of a stainless steel material such thateach of the first and second housings 200, 300 forms a stainless steelcabinet for housing the various subsystems contained therein. However,the invention is not to be so limited and the first and second housings200, 300 may be formed of other materials including other metals ornon-metal materials such as plastic. Furthermore, the various dimensionsof the first and second housings, including width, length, and height isnot to be limiting of the present invention in all embodiments. Forexample, in the exemplified embodiment the first housing 200 has asmaller width than the second housing 300, although the widths of thefirst and second housings 200, 300 (and their lengths) may be the samein other embodiments.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 9 (and other figures that may be mentionedbelow to direct attention to a specific feature of the integratedapparatus 100), each of the subsystems that is enclosed within the firsthousing 200 will be described below to provide a better understanding ofthe various components that are included within each subsystem. Tofacilitate this description, it is noted that the integrated apparatus100 includes a controller 199 that is operably coupled to severaldifferent sensors and valves within the different subsystems to controloperation of the integrated apparatus 100. In the exemplifiedembodiment, the controller 199 (and a power source 198 for powering thecontroller 199 and other electric components of the integrated apparatus100) is located within the first housing 200, although the controller199 could be located in the second housing 300 or externally to thefirst and second housings 200, 300 in other embodiments. The powersource 198 and the controller 199 are operably coupled to each other andto each electrical component that requires power and/or sendsinstructions to or receives instructions from the controller 199.

Based on temperature readings from various sensors and inputs from acontrol panel, the controller 199 is configured to activate anddeactivate heating elements and air flow generators and open and closevalves as needed to prevent overflow and to ensure operation of theintegrated apparatus 100 is maintained in accordance with predeterminedoperating parameters and procedures. For example, in some embodimentsthe controller 199 will not allow the water/liquid to flow from the hotwater supply subsystem 110 to the brewing subsystem 130 until the wateris heated to a desired temperature. The function of the controller 199in carrying out the operation of the integrated apparatus 100 will bedescribed in much more detail below.

The controller 199 may in some embodiments comprise a processor and amemory device. The processor and memory device may be separatecomponents or the memory device may be integrated with the processorwithin the controller 199 as is the case in the exemplified embodiment.Furthermore, the controller 199 may include only one processor and onememory device, or it may include multiple processors and multiple memorydevices.

The processor of the controller 199 may be any computer or centralprocessing unit (CPU), microprocessor, micro-controller, computationaldevice, or circuit configured for executing some or all of the processesdescribed herein, including without limitation: (1) activation anddeactivation of heating elements: (2) activation and deactivation of anair flow generator; and (3) opening and closing of valves.

The memory device of the controller 199 may include, without limitation,any suitable volatile or non-volatile memory including random accessmemory (RAM) and various types thereof, read-only memory (ROM) andvarious types thereof, USB flash memory, and magnetic or optical datastorage devices (e.g. internal/external hard disks, floppy discs,magnetic tape CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, optical disk, ZIP™ drive, Blu-ray disk,and others), which may be written to and/or read by the processor whichis operably connected thereto. The memory device may store algorithmsand/or calculations that can be used (by the processor) to determinewhen to open/close and activate/deactivate the various electricalcomponents of the system described herein.

The hot water supply subsystem 110 generally comprises a water tank 111,one or more heating elements 112, a first temperature sensor 113, a hotwater valve 114, a hot water outlet 115, a water supply inlet 116, and aliquid level sensor 119 (which may include float switches 119 a, 119 b).Each of the heating elements 112, the first temperature sensor 113, thehot water valve 114, and the liquid level sensor 119 is operably coupledto the controller 199 (FIG. 1) so that the controller 199 can controloperation of the heating elements 112 (on/off and varying theirtemperature) and the hot water valve 114 (open all the way, closed allthe way, or something in between) based at least in part on data sent tothe controller 199 from the first temperature sensor 113. The controller199 can also control the inflow of water through the water supply inlet116 into the water tank 111 based on data sent to the controller 199from the liquid level sensor 119. Specifically, if the liquid levelsensor 119 indicates that the level of the liquid in the water tank 111is low, the controller 199 may automatically cause water to flow intothe water tank 111 via the water supply inlet 116 (which is coupled to awater source such as a water supply line). If the liquid level sensor119 indicates that the level of the liquid in the water tank 111 ishigh, the controller 199 may stop flow of the liquid into the water tank111 via the water supply inlet 116. This can be done automaticallywithout any user intervention or input based on communication betweenthe controller 199 and the various electrical components mentioned.

A hot water conduit 117 extends from an outlet opening 118 in a bottomof the tank 111 of the hot water supply subsystem 110 to the brewingsubsystem 130 to permit the hot water heated by the hot water supplysubsystem 110 to flow into the brewing subsystem 130 as needed. The hotwater conduit 117 may be a pipe, a tube, or the like formed of anydesired material (plastic such as PVC (polyvinyl chloride), copper,lead, stainless steel, or the like) and having any desired cross-sectionthat permits fluid to flow therethrough. In some embodiments, theheating elements 112, the temperature sensor 113, the hot water valve114, and the hot water outlet 115 of the hot water supply subsystem 110may be located along the hot water conduit 117.

The water tank 111 has an inner surface 122 that defines an internalcavity 123 that is configured to hold the water 124 or other liquid thatis to be heated in the hot water supply subsystem 110. The system isdescribed herein with water being the liquid that is in the water tank111 because water is used to form most beverages including coffee andtea. However, it should be appreciated that other liquids can be used,including water-based liquids and liquids that do not include water suchas fruit juices and the like, depending on the desired end result. Thewater tank 111 may be formed of stainless steel in some embodimentsalthough the invention is not to be so limited and the water tank 111may be formed of other metal materials or even plastics in otherembodiments. The water tank 111 may have any desired shape includingbeing circular, square, rectangular, or the like. The water tank 111 mayhave a constant cross-sectional area along its length or it may have avarying cross-sectional area, so as to be funnel-shaped or the like insome embodiments. In the exemplified embodiment, the internal cavity 123of the water tank 111 has a maximum volume of 64 ounces, although theinvention is not to be so limited in all embodiments and the water tank111 may have a volume that is greater than or less than 64 ounces inother embodiments. Thus, in the exemplified embodiment the water tank111 is designed to hold 64 ounces of water, but in other embodiments itmay be designed to hold more or less than 64 ounces of water. The amountof water that can be stored in the water tank 111 dictates the amount ofthe hot beverage that can be brewed and then turned into beverage icecubes in a single cycle. Thus, in the exemplified embodiment a singlebrewing cycle will generate up to 64 ounces of the hot beverage that canbe converted into beverage ice cubes. However, the exact amount of waterheld in the water tank 111 is not to be limiting of the presentinvention in all embodiments.

The one or more heating elements 112 are configured to heat the water inthe water tank 111 to a desired hot threshold temperature. The hotthreshold temperature is the preferred temperature of the water before abrewing cycle begins (i.e., before the water is permitted to flow out ofthe water tank 111 and towards the brewing subsystem 130). In someembodiments, the water in the water tank 111 may be heated to be (i.e.,the hot threshold temperature may be) between 100 and 210° F., morespecifically between 110 and 190° F., still more specifically between120 and 180° F., still more specifically between 130 and 170° F., evenmore specifically between 140 and 160° F., and more specificallyapproximately 150° F. In some embodiments the hot threshold temperaturemay be between 190 and 210° F., as this is the temperature at whichcoffee dissolves most readily. However, because the integrated apparatus100 is making coffee ice cubes in some embodiments and the purpose is toreduce dilution in an iced coffee/beverage product rather than making anoptimal cup of coffee, temperatures below the 190-210° F. range may beused effectively. Of course, the exact temperature may be outside ofthese ranges depending on the optimal temperature for a liquid that isused to brew different beverages. For example, the optimal temperaturefor water used to brew tea and coffee might be different, and thus thewater in the water tank 111 may be heated to the specifically optimaltemperature depending on the particular beverage that it is going to beused to make.

In the embodiment exemplified in FIGS. 1 and 9, the heating elements 112are coupled directly to the outer surface of the water tank 111. FIG. 1illustrates this generically, and FIG. 9 illustrates this in accordancewith one embodiment whereby the heating elements 112 each wrapcircumferentially around the outer surface of the water tank 111 in aspaced apart manner. Of course, the invention is not to be limited bythe specific embodiment shown in FIG. 9 and the heating elements 112 maytake on different shapes, sizes, configurations, and the like. Forexample, instead of elongated heating elements 112 that wrap around thewater tank 111 as shown in FIG. 9, the heating elements 112 may becircular or polygonal shaped elements that are arranged around the outersurface of the water tank 111 in a spaced apart manner, or they may beelongated and extend vertically along the water tank 111, or they mayinclude a single sheet-like heating element that wraps around the outersurface of the water tank 111. Thus, it should be appreciated that thereare many variations for the structural embodiment of the heatingelements 112 and it is merely desired that they are capable of heatingthe water in the water tank 111 to the hot threshold temperature notedherein above irrespective of their specific structural configuration.

Although the heating elements 112 are illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 9 asbeing coupled directly to the outer surface of the water tank 111, theinvention is not to be so limited in all embodiments. Specifically, inother embodiments the heating elements 112 may be coupled to the innersurface of the water tank 111 or they may be suspended within theinterior of the water tank 111 without being coupled directly to theinner surface of the water tank 111. Furthermore, referring to FIG. 10,in one embodiment the heating elements 112 may be located along the hotwater conduit 117. In such embodiment, the heating element 112 may be awater heating element (700 Watt, for example) that is positioned withinthe flow path of the water as it exits the water tank 111 and flowstowards the brewing subsystem 130. In such embodiment, the water will beheated after it leaves the water tank 111 rather than while it is withinthe water tank 111. Thus, the exact type and positioning of the heatingelements 112 is not limiting of the invention in all embodiments so longas the heating elements 112 are configured to heat the water to adesired temperature before the water enters the brewing subsystem 150.

In the exemplified embodiment, the heating elements 112 will heat thewater tank 111, which will in turn heat the water contained within thewater tank 111. Of course, in other embodiments as mentioned herein, theheating elements 112 may heat the water while it is in the water tank111 or the heating elements 112 may heat the water as or after it leavesthe water tank 111, such as by being in-line heaters. In the exemplifiedembodiment, the heating elements 112 may be any type of heating elementthat can readily be secured to the outer surface of the water tank 111while permitting the heating elements 112 to generate heat and heat thewater in the water tank 111. For example, in one particular embodimentthe heating elements 112 may be flexible silicone heat sheets thatinclude an adhesive on one side thereof to permit the heating elements112 to be adhesively secured to the outer surface of the water tank 111.Of course, the invention is not to be so limited and the heatingelements 112 may be any type of heating element in other embodimentsincluding resistive heating elements, heating coils, metal heatingelements, ceramic heating elements, polymer PTC heating elements,composite heating elements, or combinations thereof. Thus, the inventionis not to be particularly limited by the type of heating elements usedunless expressly recited as such in the claims. Rather, in certainembodiments the heating elements 112 may be any type of element that isconfigured to generate heat.

As noted above, the heating elements 112 are operably coupled to thecontroller 199, and thus the controller 199 may control operation of theheating elements 112 by activating the heating elements 112 when heat isrequired to heat the water in the water tank 111 and deactivating theheating elements 112 when heat is no longer required. In someembodiments, so long as a sufficient amount of the water is located inthe water tank 111 (as determined by the liquid level sensor 119), theheating elements 112 will be activated. In such an embodiment, the waterin the water tank 111 will always be heated to the hot thresholdtemperature so that upon user activation of a brewing cycle by sending abrewing activation signal to the controller 199, the water will be readyto be sent to the brewing subsystem 130 without having to wait to heatthe water. In other embodiments, in order to conserve energy the heatingelements 112 may only be activated after a brewing activation signal istransmitted to the controller 199 (such as by the user pressing a buttonor the like). In such alternative embodiment, the water in the watertank 111 will remain unheated until it is needed to be heated for abrewing cycle.

Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 9, the first temperature sensor 113 isoperably coupled to the controller 199 and positioned in such a mannerso that it can be configured to sense the temperature of the waterwithin the water tank 111 (or at some point upstream of the brewingsubsystem 130). In FIG. 1, the first temperature sensor 113 isillustrated being located along the hot water conduit 117 adjacent tothe outlet opening 118 in the tank 117. However, the invention is not tobe so limited and the first temperature sensor 113 may be located withinthe interior of the tank 111 as illustrated in FIG. 9 so as to be indirect contact with the water/liquid held within the tank 111 to ensureaccurate temperature readings of the water in the tank 111 are receivedby the first temperature sensor. Furthermore, the first temperaturesensor 113 may be positioned at any other location so long as it iscapable of detecting/sensing the temperature of the water held in thewater tank 111. Thus, the exact positioning of the first temperaturesensor 113 is not to be limiting of the invention other than that itmust be configured to detect the temperature of the water held in thewater tank 111 or the water in the hot water supply subsystem 110 beforeit passes to the brewing subsystem 130.

The hot water valve 114 is located downstream of the water tank 111 andupstream of the brewing subsystem 130 to control flow of the water fromthe water tank 111 to the brewing subsystem 130. Specifically, when thehot water valve 114 is fully closed, no water will flow from the watertank 111 to the brewing subsystem 130. When the hot water valve 114 ispartially or fully open, water will flow, via gravity as describedabove, from the water tank 111 to the brewing subsystem 130. Thus, thehot water valve 114 is the component that controls the start/initiationof a brewing cycle because once the water passes the hot water valve 144it will enter directly into the brewing subsystem 130. In theexemplified embodiment, the hot water valve 114 is operably coupled tothe controller 199 so that the controller 199 can control operation(i.e., opening and closing) of the hot water valve 114. In someembodiments, the controller 199 may automatically open the valve upon asufficient amount of water being held in the water tank 111 and heatedto the hot threshold temperature. In other embodiments, some user inputon a control panel (i.e., initiating a brewing activation signal) may berequired to cause the controller 199 to open the hot water valve 114 asdiscussed herein below with reference in part to FIGS. 8A and 8B.

In the exemplified embodiment, the hot water valve 114 is an electricvalve that is operably coupled to the controller 199. The hot watervalve 114 may be any type of valve that can prevent and permit flow ofthe water from the hot water supply subsystem 110 to the brewingsubsystem 130 as desired. In one embodiment, the hot water valve 114(and all other valves described herein) is a solenoid valve. However,the exact type of valve used as the hot water valve 114 is not to belimiting of the present invention so long as the valve is capable ofaltering between closed and open positions as described herein.

The hot water outlet 115 is the outlet from the hot water supplysubsystem 110 to the brewing subsystem 130. The hot water outlet 115 isdownstream of the hot water valve 114. Furthermore, the hot water outlet115 is located at a first elevation relative to a horizontal orapproximately horizontal surface upon which the integrated apparatus 100is positioned. All uses of the term elevation herein are relative to thesame horizontal or approximately horizontal surface upon which theintegrated apparatus 100 is positioned. Thus, if one elevation isdescribed as being less than another elevation, it means the oneelevation is closer to the horizontal surface on which the integratedapparatus 100 is positioned than the other elevation. Thought of anotherway, the elevation is the vertical distance of one component from thefloor on which the integrated apparatus 100 is positioned.

The water supply inlet 116 may be used to automatically add water to thewater tank 111 from a water supply line/water source. Specifically, thewater supply inlet 116 may be coupled to a conduit that connectsdirectly to a water supply, such as a water supply line in a home orbuilding. The water supply inlet 116 may include a water supply valve120 to control the flow of water from the water supply to the water tank111 via the water supply inlet 116. When the water supply valve 120 isopen, water can flow from the water supply to the water tank 111. Whenthe water supply valve 120 is closed, water cannot flow from the watersupply to the water tank 111. The water supply valve 120 may be operablycoupled to the controller 199 so that opening and closing of the watersupply valve 120 may be automated by the controller 199. Alternatively,the water supply valve 120 may be a manual valve that can be opened andclosed manually by a user to flow water into and prevent flow of waterinto the water tank 111 from the water supply line. FIG. 6 illustratesthe location where the water supply inlet 116 enters into the firsthousing 200 and FIG. 7 illustrates the location where the water supplyinlet 116 enters into the internal cavity 123 of the water tank 111.

In addition to or as an alternative to the water supply inlet 116, watermay be added to the water tank 111 by simply pouring the water into thewater tank 111 through an opening in its top end. Specifically,referring to FIGS. 2 and 5-7, the first housing 200 includes a cover 201that is adjustable between a closed position as shown in FIGS. 2 and 6and an open position as shown in FIGS. 5 and 7. When in the openposition, an opening 202 in the top end of the water tank 111 isexposed, thus permitting a user to pour water into the internal cavity123 of the water tank 111 through the opening 202. Thus, water may beadded to the water tank 111 either automatically through the watersupply inlet 116 or manually through the opening 202 in the top end ofthe water tank 111.

Finally, the hot water supply subsystem 110 comprises the liquid levelsensor 119. The liquid level sensor 119 is operably coupled to thecontroller 199 to send signals to the controller 199 regarding the levelof the water/liquid within the water tank 111. In FIG. 1, the liquidlevel sensor 119 is illustrated as a singular component. However, inFIGS. 7 and 9, for example, the liquid level sensor 119 is illustratedcomprising an empty float switch 119 a located near the bottom of theinternal cavity of the water tank 111 and a full float switch 119 blocated near the top of the internal cavity of the water tank 111. Theinvention is not limited to whether a single liquid level sensor or anempty and full float switch is used to monitor the level of thewater/liquid within the water tank 111.

The controller 199 may control the filling of the water tank 111 via thewater supply inlet 116 automatically based on information sent to thecontroller 199 from the liquid level sensor 119. Specifically, if theliquid level sensor 119 sends data indicating that the water tank 111 isempty, the controller 199 may automatically activate the water supplyinlet 116 by opening the water supply valve 120 to permit water to flowinto the water tank 111 until the liquid level sensor 119 sends a signalto the controller 199 indicating that the water tank 111 is full. Atthat time, the controller 199 will close the water supply valve 120 sothat no more water can enter therein. In this manner, the integratedapparatus 100 may automatically ensure that the water tank 111 is alwaysfull. This can reduce user time requirements in operation of theintegrated apparatus 100 and in some instances where the heatingelements 112 are always operational, ensure that hot water is constantlyavailable for brewing. Furthermore, if the water tank 111 does overflowfor any reason (either a user manually pouring too much water into thewater tank 111 or due to the controller 199 or the water supply valve120 not functioning properly), the system includes an overflow conduit121 that extends from an opening in a sidewall of the water tank 111 toa drain (such as a floor drain or a sink drain or the like) so that theintegrated apparatus 100 will not completely overflow. Rather, excesswater will be drained from the water tank 111 through the overflowconduit 121 rather than flowing out through the opening 202 in the topend of the water tank 111.

Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 9 concurrently, the brewing subsystem 130will be described. As described above, the brewing subsystem 130receives the hot water generated by the hot water supply subsystem 110and mixes it with a beverage additive to form a hot beverage. In thatregard, the brewing subsystem 130 includes a hot water inlet 131 locatedat a second elevation relative to the horizontal surface on which theintegrated apparatus 100 is positioned and a hot beverage outlet 132located at a third elevation relative to the horizontal surface. The hotwater inlet 131 is fluidly coupled to the hot water outlet 115 of thehot water supply subsystem 110 to permit the hot water to flow from thehot water supply subsystem 110 into the brewing subsystem 130.

As seen in FIGS. 1 and 9, the second elevation of the hot water inlet131 of the brewing subsystem 130 is less than the first elevation of thehot water outlet 115 of the hot water supply subsystem 110. Furthermore,the third elevation of the hot beverage outlet 132 of the brewingsubsystem 130 is less than the second elevation of the hot water inlet131 of the brewing subsystem 130. These changes in elevations facilitatethe gravity driven flow of the water/liquid throughout the brewing andcooling process as described herein.

The brewing subsystem 130 further comprises a dispenser 144 comprisingone or more dispensing nozzles and a mixing apparatus 133. The mixingapparatus 133 is positioned to receive the hot water from the hot waterinlet 131 and convert it into a hot beverage. Thus, the mixing apparatus133 is downstream of the hot water inlet 131 and the hot water outlet132 is downstream of the mixing apparatus 133. Furthermore, thedispenser 144 is fluidly coupled to the hot water inlet 131 so that thehot water passes from the hot water inlet 131 to the dispenser 144 wherethe hot water is dispensed into the mixing apparatus 133 via the one ormore dispensing nozzles. In the exemplified embodiment, the dispenser144 is a sprinkler head comprising a plurality of dispensing nozzlesthrough which the hot water may flow into the mixing apparatus 133.Thus, the dispenser 144 may spray the hot water over a larger surfacearea to entirely cover an additive contained within the mixing apparatus133 as described below. However, in other embodiments the dispenser 144may simply comprise a single opening/nozzle through which the hot watermay flow from the dispenser 144 into the mixing apparatus 133.

The mixing apparatus 133 may be a basket or other container having aninner surface 136 that defines an interior cavity 137 that is generallyconfigured to hold a filter 134 and a bed of additives 135 therein. Forexample, the filter 134 may be a coffee-type filter made of disposablepaper that is positioned within the interior cavity 137 of the mixingapparatus 133 and the bed of additives 135 may be ground coffee beansthat are placed atop of the filter 134. Of course, the bed of additives135 may be other than coffee beans in other embodiments, such as beingtea leaves or the like. Varying the substance of the bed of additives135 will modify/change the beverage that is formed as the end product.In any case, the filter 134 is positioned within the mixing apparatus133 so that it may trap the coffee grounds while permitting the liquidcoffee (i.e., hot beverage) formed by passing the hot water through themixing apparatus 133 to flow through. The mixing apparatus 133 comprisesan opening 138 in its bottom surface so that the hot water that flowsinto the brewing subsystem 130 from the hot water supply subsystem 110can flow into the interior cavity 137, contact and pass through the bedof additives 135 and the filter 134, and pass through the opening 138 asthe hot beverage towards the hot beverage outlet 132.

Once the hot beverage passes through the opening 138 in the mixingapparatus 13, the hot beverage will flow automatically into the coolingsubsystem 150. Specifically, in the exemplified embodiment there are novalves or other devices to prevent flow of the hot beverage from themixing apparatus 133 to the cooling subsystem 150. Rather, as soon asthe hot beverage is formed in the brewing subsystem 130, the hotbeverage flows directly into the cooling subsystem 150 so that thecooling process may begin. Of course, in alternative embodiments a valvemay be added to the system between the brewing subsystem 130 and thecooling subsystem 150 to prevent overflow of the cooling subsystem 150in case it already has a beverage being cooled therein. In suchembodiments, the hot beverage may flow into a holding tank between thebrewing subsystem 130 and the cooling subsystem 150 until the coolingsubsystem 150 is empty and has sufficient available volume to accept thenewly brewed hot beverage.

In the exemplified embodiment, adding a valve and/or holding tankbetween the brewing subsystem 130 and the cooling subsystem 150 is notneeded because the hot water will not be released from the water tank111 if there is a beverage being cooled in the cooling subsystem 150.Specifically, because in the exemplified embodiment once the hot waterleaves the hot water supply subsystem 110 it automatically travels viagravity through the brewing subsystem 130 and to the cooling subsystem150 without any valves to prevent or slow this flow, it may be necessaryto ensure that the cooling subsystem 150 is empty before the hot water150 is released from the water tank 111 and a brewing cycle begins. Inthis regard, as will be discussed more fully below, the coolingsubsystem 150 may include a liquid level sensor that is operably coupledto the controller 199 so that if the liquid level sensor detects aparticular amount of the beverage in the cooling subsystem 150, it willnot open the hot water valve 114, thereby preventing a new brewing cyclefrom starting. In such an embodiment, even if a user tries to activate abrewing cycle, if there is an amount of the hot beverage in the coolingsubsystem 150, the controller 199 will not allow the brewing cycle tobegin in order to prevent overflow of the cooling subsystem 150.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 5, 8A, and 8B, the brewing subsystem 130further comprises a brewing chamber 139 in which the mixing apparatus133 is removably positioned. The first housing 200 comprises a window203 in a first upstanding wall 204 of the housing 200 that forms apassageway into the brewing chamber 139. Specifically, in FIG. 8A themixing apparatus 133 is illustrated positioned within the brewingchamber 139 and in FIG. 8B the mixing apparatus 133 is illustratedremoved from the brewing chamber 139. In this regard, the brewingchamber 139 comprises a pair of side rails 140 on which a flange 141 ofthe mixing apparatus 133 may be slid for insertion and removal of themixing apparatus 133 from the brewing chamber 139. The mixing apparatus133 may include a handle 142 to facilitate ready gripping by a userduring the insertion and removal procedure. The mixing apparatus 133must be removed from the brewing chamber 139 between brewing cycles sothat a new filter 134 and a fresh amount of the additive 135 can beinserted into the interior cavity 137 of the mixing apparatus 133 inpreparation for a subsequent brewing cycle. The handle 142 of the mixingapparatus 133 and the window 203 in the first housing 200 make theprocess of cleaning and refilling the mixing apparatus 133 easy toaccomplish.

As seen in FIGS. 2, 5, 8A, and 8B, there is a control panel 250 on thefirst upstanding wall 204 of the first housing 200 that includesindicators 251 and an actuator 252. The indicators include an “addwater” indicator, a “low coffee” indicator, a “service” indicator, and a“working” indicator. Each of the indicators has a light associated withit that can be lit up when the condition of that indicator is met. Forexample, when the water level in the water tank 111 is low as determinedby the liquid level sensor 119, the “add water” indicator may be lit.This may be important where the water supply inlet 116 is not hooked upto a water supply and thus a user must manually add water into the watertank 111. When the machine requires service, the “service” indicator maybe lit. When the machine is either brewing a beverage in the brewingsubsystem 130 or cooling a beverage in the cooling subsystem 150, the“working” indicator may be lit. And finally, when the amount of brewedcoffee is detected at a low level (determined based on the amount of thebrewed and subsequently cooled coffee that is located in a cool beveragereservoir of the freezing subsystem 170 discussed in more detail below),the “low coffee” indicator may be lit, indicating to a user that morecoffee should be brewed. The indicators may also include an “ice cubesize” indicator and an “ice chest full” indicator. The “ice cube size”indicator may enable a user to change the size of the beverage ice cubesthat are made by the integrated apparatus 100 as discussed more fullybelow. The “ice chest full” indicator may indicate to a user that noadditional beverage ice cubes should be made because there isinsufficient space to support them in the ice chest of freezercompartment 173. Other indicators can be included on the control panel250 to enhance the user experience of the integrated apparatus 100.

In the exemplified embodiment, the actuator 252 is a button that can bepressed by a user to start a brewing cycle. Of course, the actuator 252may be a toggle switch, a slide switch, or any other type of actuationmechanism as may be desired. A user actuating the actuator 252 may causeone of several things to happen, depending on specific system operationparameters. In some embodiments, pressing the actuator button 252 mayactivate the heating elements 112 to begin generating heat so that theycan heat up the water within the water tank 111. In such an embodiment,upon the water in the water tank 111 being detected at the hot thresholdtemperature, the controller 199 may automatically cause the hot watervalve 114 to open to send the hot water to the brewing subsystem 130. Inother embodiments, the heating elements 113 may always be operating toheat the water to the hot threshold temperature when there is asufficient amount of water detected in the water tank 111. In such anembodiment, upon pressing the actuator button 252 the controller 199 mayimmediately open the hot water valve 114 to start the brewing processbecause the water has already been heated (after checking with the firsttemperature sensor to ensure that the water has reached the hotthreshold temperature).

Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 9, the cooling subsystem 150 will bedescribed in greater detail. The cooling subsystem 150 generallycomprises a hot beverage inlet 151, a heat exchanger 160, an air flowgenerator 152, a second temperature sensor 153, a cooled beverage valve154, and a cooled beverage outlet 155. The cooling subsystem 150 mayalso include a liquid level sensor in some embodiments. The hot beverageinlet 151 receives the hot beverage from the brewing subsystem 130 andthe cooled beverage outlet 155 permits the beverage, once cooled by theheat exchanger 160, to pass into the freezer subsystem 170. Thus, thehot beverage stays within the heat exchanger 160 until it is cooled to acool threshold temperature, at which time it may be sent to the coolbeverage reservoir 171 of the freezer subsystem 170. The hot beverageinlet 151 is located at a fourth elevation that is less than the thirdelevation of the hot beverage outlet 132 of the brewing subsystem 130.The cooled beverage outlet 155 is located at a fifth elevation that isless than the fourth elevation of the hot beverage inlet 151. Again,this permits the gravity flow of the liquid throughout the brewing andcooling process as described herein.

Referring to FIGS. 9, 12, and 13, the heat exchanger 160 will bedescribed in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. Inthe exemplified embodiment, the heat exchanger 160 comprises a hotbeverage cooling tank 161 and a plurality of heat dissipating elements166 coupled to and extending from the hot beverage cooling tank 161. Thehot beverage cooling tank 161 comprises a floor 162 and a sidewall 163extending upwardly from the floor 162. The floor 162 and the sidewall163 collectively define a cavity or reservoir 169, which may also bereferred to herein as a heat exchange chamber of the heat exchanger 160.In the exemplified embodiment, the cavity 169 has a volume ofapproximately 64 ounces so that all of the beverage brewed in a singlecycle may pass through the brewing subsystem 130 and into the coolingsubsystem 150 where it may be stored while it cools. Furthermore, it maybe desirable to maximize the surface area of the floor 162 of the hotbeverage cooling tank 161 to shorten the cooling time. Specifically, theshallower the hot beverage is while contained within the cavity 169 ofthe hot beverage cooling tank 161, the quicker it will cool. Thus, thelength and width dimensions of the cavity 169 of the hot beveragecooling tank 161 may be maximized within the dimensions of the firsthousing 200 while keeping the height of the sidewalls 162 and the depthof the cavity 169 to a minimum while still enabling it to hold thepreferred amount of the beverage (i.e., 64 ounces or the like). In someembodiments, it may be desirable for the maximum depth of the hotbeverage within the cavity 169 to be 1-2 inches, or more specifically1-1.5 inches. Thus, the maximum height of the sidewall 163 as measuredfrom the floor 162 to the first surface 165 a of the hot beveragecooling tank 161 may be 1-2 inches, or 1-1.5 inches.

In one embodiment, the hot beverage cooling tank 161 may have a lengthL, a width W, and a height H. The dimensions of the length L, width Wand height H should be sufficient to equal a volume of at least 64ounces while keeping the height H to a minimum. For example, in oneembodiment the height H may be 1.5 inches, and the length L multipliedby the width W may be between 80 inches squared and 90 inches squared.Thus, in one embodiment the area of the hot beverage cooling tank 161may be between 80 and 90 inches squared and the height H may beapproximately 1.5 inches squared. Stated another way, in someembodiments the cavity 169 of the beverage cooling tank 161 may have avolume of between 115 and 130 inches cubed. The exact value of thelength L, the width W, and the height H may be modified depending on theshape of the hot beverage cooling tank 161. Furthermore, the dimensionsprovided herein are not intended to be limiting of the present inventionunless expressly recited in the claims.

In the exemplified embodiment, the cavity 169 of the hot beveragecooling tank 161 is square or rectangular-shaped with rounded corners.Utilizing rounded corners may be desirable to limit the amount ofbacteria that may become deposited and remain within the cavity 169.Specifically, sharp corners are more prone to retaining bacteria andbacteria may be more difficult to remove from such sharp corners. Thus,rounding the corners is desirable in some embodiments to maintain thebeverage cooling tank 161 in a hygienic manner. In the exemplifiedembodiment the top end of the beverage cooling tank 161 is closed by alid that has some of the heat dissipating elements 166 extendingtherefrom. However, in other embodiments the top end of the beveragecooling tank 161 may be left open, which may speed up the coolingprocess.

Furthermore, the hot beverage cooling tank 161 comprises an outlet 164in the floor 162 to permit the beverage, once cooled to the coolthreshold temperature, to flow out of the hot beverage cooling tank 161via the cooled beverage outlet 155. In certain embodiments, the floor162 of the hot beverage cooling tank 161 may be angled towards theoutlet 164 so that the liquid contained within the beverage cooling tank161 flows automatically, via gravity, through the outlet 164 when thecooled beverage valve 154 is opened as discussed below. In suchembodiments, the outlet 164 will be located at a lower elevation thanthe remainder of the floor 162 of the hot beverage cooling tank 161 toencourage flow of the cooled beverage through the outlet 164 at theappropriate time. Alternatively, the entire hot beverage cooling tank161 may be angled when installed to permit the gravity flow of theliquid through the outlet 164 when the cooled beverage valve 154 isopened.

In certain embodiments, the hot beverage cooling tank 161 may be formedof aluminum, although the invention is not to be so limited and otherthermally conductive materials may be used, including copper, brass,steel, bronze, or the like.

The hot beverage cooling tank 161 comprises a first surface 165 a and asecond surface 165 b that is opposite the first surface 165 a. In theexemplified embodiment, the plurality of heat dissipating elements 166comprises a first set of fins 167 located on the first surface 165 a(which may be formed by a lid or cover as described above) of the hotbeverage cooling tank 161 and a second set of fins 168 located on thesecond surface 165 b of the hot beverage cooling tank 160. The pluralityof heat dissipating elements 166 increase the surface area of the heatexchanger 160, thereby more effectively removing heat from the hotbeverage in the hot beverage cooling tank 161 for a shorter coolingtime. The heat exchanger 160 may also include vent openings 196 in thetop portion thereof to enable venting of the cavity 169.

FIG. 11 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the heat exchanger 160with the top portion removed so that the cavity 169 is exposed.Specifically, in this embodiment the heat exchanger 160 includesinternal fins 197 located within the cavity 169 of the hot beveragecooling tank 161. Such internal fins 197 may further reduce the coolingtime.

Referring back to FIGS. 1 and 9, the integrated apparatus 100 will befurther described. As noted above, the hot beverage inlet 151 receivesthe hot beverage discharged from the brewing subsystem 130 and flows thehot beverage into the cavity 169 of the hot beverage cooling tank 161 ofthe heat exchanger 160. It should be appreciated that during operation,the hot beverage simply remains stationary within the cavity 169 of thehot beverage cooling tank 161 as it cools and until it reaches apredetermined reduced temperature. For example, the hot beverage mayenter the hot beverage cooling tank 161 at a temperature ofapproximately 150° F. and it may stay in the hot beverage cooling tank161 until it reaches a cool threshold temperature. The cool thresholdtemperature may be between 60 and 90° F., more specifically between 70and 80° F., and still more specifically approximately between 70 and 75°F. The hot beverage is not moving within the hot beverage cooing tank161 during cooling, but rather remains stationary. Thus, the hot andsubsequently cooled beverage simply stays within the hot beveragecooling tank 161 until it reaches the cool threshold temperature. Inthis way, the hot beverage cooling tank 161 acts as a holding chamberfor holding the beverage while it cools. Although the beverage isstationary within the hot beverage cooling tank 161, there is an activeair stream 159 being flowed across the heat exchanger 160 via the airflow generator 152 to assist in cooling the hot beverage.

In the exemplified embodiment, the air flow generator 152 comprises twofans that are positioned in a side-by-side arrangement so as to generatethe air flow stream 159 across the heat exchanger 160. Thus, the airflow generator 152 is positioned adjacent to the heat exchanger 160 withits air blowing side facing the heat exchanger 160. In the exemplifiedembodiment, the two fans of the air flow generator 152 are positioned onthe same side of the heat exchanger 160. However, in other embodimentsthe two fans may be positioned on opposite or adjacent sides of the heatexchanger 160.

As best seen in FIG. 1 and in FIGS. 3 and 4 when viewed together, theair flow generator 152 and the heat exchanger 160 are located within thefirst housing 200 in alignment with one or more inlet vents 205 formedin the first upstanding wall 204 of the first housing 200 and one ormore outlet vents 206 in a second upstanding wall 207 of the firsthousing 200. The inlet and outlet vents 205, 206 are openings or holesformed into the first and second upstanding walls 204, 207 that permitair to enter into and leave the internal space within the first housing200. The inlet and outlet vents 205, 206 may have any desired shape,configuration, and size and it can be different than that which is shownin the drawings in some embodiments. During operation the air flowgenerator 152 pulls ambient air through the one or more inlet vents 205and generates the air flow stream 159 therefrom. The air flow stream 159flows across the heat exchanger 160 and then out through the outletvents 206. Although two fans are illustrated in the exemplifiedembodiment, the air flow generator 152 may include only one fan or morethan two fans in other embodiments. Thus, the invention is not to belimited by the number of fans that make up the air flow generator 152,but rather in some embodiments merely that the integrated apparatus 100includes the air flow generator 152 to speed up the beverage coolingprocess that takes place in the heat exchanger 160.

It should be appreciated that the processes taking place in the hotwater supply subsystem 110 and the brewing subsystem 130 generate heat,and thus by placing the cooling subsystem 150 below the hot water supplysubsystem 110 and the brewing subsystem 130, the heat generated in thehot water supply subsystem 110 and the brewing subsystem 130 does notaffect the cooling of the hot beverage in the cooling subsystem 150.Rather, because heat rises, the heat generated in the hot water supplysubsystem 110 and the brewing subsystem 130 remains above the heatexchanger 160. Furthermore, the heat exchanger 160 is positionedadjacent to the second housing 300, which houses the components of thefreezing subsystem 170. Thus, the interior of the second housing 300 isa cold or chilled environment. By placing the heat exchanger 160adjacent to the second housing 300, the processing time for cooling thebeverage within the cooling subsystem 150 may be further reduced as therelatively cool temperature (below ambient and possibly below freezing)of the air within the second housing 300 may contact the heat exchanger160.

As set forth herein, the air flow generator 152 is configured to blowambient, room temperature air (i.e., the air flow stream 159) across theheat exchanger 160 to assist in the cooling of the hot beverage withinthe cavity 169 of the hot beverage cooling tank 161. This process maytake ten or more minutes, or fifteen or more minutes, or twenty or moreminutes in various embodiments. However, it may be desirable to continuecooling the hot beverage within the hot beverage cooling tank 161 untilit reaches the cool threshold temperature, which as noted above may bebetween 70° F. and 75° F. in some embodiments.

Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 9, the second temperature sensor 153monitors the temperature of the hot beverage within the hot beveragecooling tank 161. In FIG. 1, the second temperature sensor 153 isillustrated being located outside of the hot beverage cooling tank 161.However, the second temperature sensor 153 may alternatively be locatedwithin the cavity 169 of the hot beverage cooling tank 161 to ensure anaccurate temperature reading of the hot beverage. The second temperaturesensor 153 is operably coupled to the controller 199 so that thecontroller can control operation of the cooled beverage valve 154 basedon the temperature readings transmitted from the second temperaturesensor 153.

Specifically, the cooled beverage valve 154 is located adjacent to theoutlet 164 of the hot beverage cooling tank 161 and is adjustablebetween a closed state that prevents the beverage within the cavity 169of the hot beverage cooling tank 161 from exiting and an open state thepermits the beverage within the cavity 169 of the hot beverage coolingtank 161 to pass into the freezing subsystem 170. In operation, thecontroller 199 will maintain the cooled beverage valve 154 in the closedstate until the second temperature sensor 153 sends a signal to thecontroller 199 indicating that the beverage in the hot beverage coolingtank 161 has reached the cool threshold temperature, such as 70-75° F.as noted above. Upon the temperature sensor 153 signaling to thecontroller 199 that the temperature of the beverage in the hot beveragecooling tank 161 has reached the cool threshold temperature, thecontroller 199 will open the cooled beverage valve 154, therebypermitting the cooled beverage to flow from the cooling subsystem 150 toa cool beverage reservoir 171 of the freezing subsystem 170. The cooledbeverage valve 154 will then bias back into the closed state (byinstruction from the controller 199) either automatically upon the hotbeverage cooling tank 161 being empty of the cooled beverage or after auser activates a new brewing cycle (once the user presses the brewingbutton to activate a new brewing cycle, this may initiate the closing ofthe cooled beverage valve 154 if it is not already closed).

In certain embodiments, the opening of the cooled beverage valve 154 mayoccur automatically by the controller 199 based on communicationsbetween the controller 199 and the cooled beverage valve 154 and thetemperature sensor 153. Specifically, in some embodiments immediatelyupon the temperature sensor 153 detecting that the temperature of thebeverage within the hot beverage cooling tank 161 has reached the coolthreshold temperature, the temperature sensor 153 will transmit thisdata to the controller 199. In response, the controller 199 mayautomatically open the cooled beverage valve 154. Due to gravity asdiscussed herein (and the angle of the floor 162 of the hot beveragecooling tank 161), upon the cooled beverage valve 154 being opened, thecooled beverage will flow automatically into the cool beverage reservoir171 of the freezing subsystem 170. The cool threshold temperature may bepre-set at the factory, and/or it may be set by an end user. The coolthreshold temperature may in some embodiments be modifiable to enhanceand optimize system operation.

Referring now to FIGS. 1, 9 and 14, the freezing subsystem 170 will bedescribed. As noted above, the freezing subsystem 170 is enclosed withinthe second housing 300 rather than being within the first housing 200.In some embodiments, the freezing subsystem 170 may be a standardcommercial grade ice cube maker and it may be retrofit to work inconjunction with the first housing 200 to make beverage ice cubesinstead of water ice cubes. As noted above, the freezing subsystem 170comprises the cool beverage reservoir 171, the beverage ice maker 172,and the freezer compartment 173.

Once the cooled beverage valve 154 is opened and the cooled beverageleaves the cooling subsystem 150, the cooled beverage flows into thecool beverage reservoir 171 of the freezing subsystem 170. The coolbeverage reservoir 171 comprises a floor 174 and sidewalls 175 extendingupwardly from the floor 174 to thereby define the reservoir for holdingthe cool beverage. Furthermore, an outlet 176 is formed into the floor174 of the cool beverage reservoir 171 to permit the cool beverage toflow from the cool beverage reservoir 171 to the beverage ice maker 172.Finally, a liquid level sensor 177 is placed within the cool beveragereservoir 171 to detect the amount of the cooled beverage is in in thecool beverage reservoir 171. The liquid level sensor 177 is operablycoupled to the controller 199 to transmit data regarding the amount ofthe cooled beverage that is in the cool beverage reservoir 171.

In the exemplified embodiment, the outlet 175 of the cool beveragereservoir 171 may always be open such that the cooled beverage in thecool beverage reservoir 171 will always flow out through the outlet 175towards the beverage ice maker 172. In other embodiments, the integratedapparatus 100 may include an ice maker valve downstream of the coolbeverage reservoir 171 and upstream of the beverage ice maker 172 tocontrol when the cooled beverage can flow from the cool beveragereservoir 171 to the beverage ice maker 172. In some embodiments,opening and closing of the ice maker valve may be dictated by the datatransmitted to the controller 199 from the liquid level sensor 177.Specifically, the controller 199 may keep the ice maker valve closeduntil a predetermined amount of the cooled beverage is located withinthe cool beverage reservoir 171.

In the exemplified embodiment, there is no ice maker valve included.Rather, the controller 199 may control the opening and closing of thecooled beverage valve 154 based on the data transmitted from the liquidlevel sensor 177 to the controller 199. Specifically, in someembodiments the controller 199 may only open the cooled beverage valve154 when the temperature sensor 153 indicates that the cool temperaturethreshold has been reached and the liquid level sensor 177 indicatesthat the cool beverage reservoir 171 is sufficiently empty that it canhold all of the cooled beverage that is currently in the hot beveragecooling tank 161. This might be used to ensure overflow of the coolbeverage reservoir 171 is prevented. Of course, in other embodiments theliquid level sensor 177 may play no role in the opening and closing ofthe cooled beverage valve 154 and this may be accomplished solely basedon the cool threshold temperature being reached as discussed hereinabove.

In still other embodiments, the liquid level sensor 177 may indicate tothe controller 199 that the cool beverage reservoir 171 is empty so thatthe controller 199 can cause the “low coffee” indicator light on thecontrol panel 250 to illuminate. In some embodiments, this may be theonly purpose of the liquid level sensor 177 and it may play no role inthe opening and closing of the relevant valves as discussed herein.

In the exemplified embodiment, the beverage ice maker 172 comprises anevaporator plate that comprises a vertically mounted metal plateattached to a grid. The system may include refrigerant lines or the liketo remove heat from the beverage ice maker 172 to lower its temperatureto below freezing. The beverage ice maker 172 forms a grid with aplurality of cube openings, each of which will form a single ice cubeduring the ice making process described herein below.

In the exemplified embodiment, there is a closed fluid flow circuitformed between the cool beverage reservoir 171, the beverage ice maker172, and an excess beverage trough 178 positioned downstream of thebeverage ice maker 172. Specifically, to form ice from the cooledbeverage, the cooled beverage flows from the cool beverage reservoir 171out of the outlet 174 and then cascades over the beverage ice maker 172or evaporator. As the cooled beverage cascades over the beverage icemaker 172, some of the cooled beverage freezes into ice. The cooledbeverage that freezes into ice will adhere to the grid of the beverageice maker 172 within one of the cube openings. However, not all of thecooled beverage will freeze into ice in a single pass over the beverageice maker 172. The cooled beverage that does not freeze becomes excessbeverage that is caught in the excess beverage trough 178. The systemincludes a pump 179 to pump the excess beverage from the excess beveragetrough 178 back into the cool beverage reservoir 171, where the excessbeverage mixes with any cooled beverage in the cool beverage reservoir171 and does another pass over the beverage ice maker 172. This processcontinues until a sufficient amount of the cooled and excess beveragehas frozen to make beverage ice cubes 180 of a desired size. Thebeverage ice cubes 180 are formed by the beverage freezing layer bylayer as it cascades over the beverage ice maker 172. Once the beverageice cubes 180 are formed to a sufficient or desired size, the beverageice maker or evaporator plate 172 is heated to slightly melt thebeverage ice cubes 180 until they fall, by gravity, into the freezercompartment 173 (see FIG. 1) where they are accessible to a user asdescribed below. The freezing subsystem 170 may also include amechanical component to push the beverage ice cubes away from thebeverage ice maker or evaporator 172 to speed up this process ratherthan waiting for gravity to take the beverage ice cubes from thebeverage ice maker 172 to the freezer compartment 173.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 14, the second housing 300 may include a door301 that can be altered between a closed state (shown in FIG. 2) and anopen state (not shown). The door 301 may be coupled to the secondhousing 300 via a hinge, or it may be a slidable door such that it canbe slid relative to the second housing 300 to gain access into thefreezer compartment 173. When the door 301 is open, a passageway intothe freezer compartment 173 is created so that a user can reach into thefreezer compartment 173 to remove a desired amount of the beverage icecubes to add to an iced beverage. For example, to convert a hot coffeebeverage into an iced coffee beverage, a cup may be filled with thebeverage ice cubes (which are formed from hot coffee brewed in theintegrated apparatus 100 as described herein), and then a separatelybrewed hot coffee can be added to the cup. In this way, the beverage icecubes will convert the hot coffee into an iced coffee without anydilution, thereby maintaining the desired flavor of the coffee.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, complete operation of the integratedapparatus 100 will be described from filling the water tank 111 withwater to forming the beverage ice cubes 180. If the water supply inlet116 is not coupled to a water supply or water source, the first step isfor a user to pour water into the water tank 111 of the hot water supplysubsystem 110. If the water supply inlet 116 is coupled to a watersupply or water source, the first step is for the controller 199 toreceive data from the liquid level sensor 119 regarding the amount ofwater that is in the water tank 111 and to open/close the water supplyvalve 120 as needed to ensure that a sufficient or desired amount ofwater is transported into the water tank 111. In embodiments where thewater supply inlet 116 is coupled to a water supply, the water tank 111may always be full or being filled automatically due to communicationbetween the controller 199 and the liquid level sensor 119 and watersupply valve 120.

In one embodiment, upon the water tank 111 being filled with a desiredamount of the water (i.e., 64 ounces in one embodiment), the controller199 will activate the heating element(s) 112 to heat the water in thewater tank 111. The heating elements 112 will heat the water in thewater tank 111 to the hot threshold temperature. In some embodiments,the heating elements 112, by way of instructions received from thecontroller 199, are configured to maintain the water in the water tank111 at the hot threshold temperature so that it is prepared for brewingwhen a brewing activation signal is received by the controller 199, suchas by a user pressing a button or otherwise actuation the actuator 252on the control panel 250. Thus, in such embodiment the water in thewater tank 111 is heated to the hot threshold temperature so long as theintegrated apparatus 100 is powered on. In this embodiment, the waterwill remain heated in the water tank 111 until the brewing activationsignal is received by the controller 199. In accordance with thisembodiment, once the brewing activation signal is received by thecontroller 199, controller 199 will check to make sure that the waterhas reached the hot threshold temperature and if so, the controller 199will automatically open the hot water valve 114 to enable the hot waterto flow from the hot water supply subsystem 110 to the brewing subsystem130.

In an alternative embodiment, the water in the water tank 111 may not beheated until the brewing activation signal is received by the controller199. Specifically, in this alternative embodiment, the water will be atroom temperature in the water tank 111, and then a user will actuate theactuator 252 thereby sending the brewing activation signal to thecontroller 199. At this time, and not prior, the controller 199 willinstruct the heating elements 112 to power on and heat the water. Thiscan occur either within the water tank 111 if the heating element 112 iscoupled to the water within the water tank 111 or coupled to the watertank (FIG. 9) or external to the water tank 111 if the heating element112 is located along a conduit that is outside of the water tank 111(FIG. 10). In this embodiment, as soon as the water reaches the hotthreshold temperature, the controller 199 will open the hot water valve114 to enable the hot water to flow from the hot water supply subsystem110 to the brewing subsystem 130 because the brewing activation signalhas already been received.

Next, the hot water flows through the mixing apparatus 133 of thebrewing subsystem 130, which is prefilled with the filter 134 and theadditive 135. Specifically, the hot water will flow through thedispenser 144 and out of the dispenser nozzle(s) into the mixingapparatus 133 which is a container or coffee basket or the like. Withinthe mixing apparatus 133, the hot water will mix with the additive 135,flow through the additive 135 and the filter 134, and then flow outthrough the opening 138 in the bottom surface of the mixing apparatus133 as a hot beverage. In one embodiment, the additive 135 may be groundcoffee beans and the hot beverage may be hot coffee as described herein.The flow of the hot water into and through the brewing subsystem 130 isnot impeded by any valves. Rather, the hot water will flow through thebrewing subsystem 130 from the hot water inlet 131 to the hot beverageoutlet 132 unimpeded by valves or other mechanisms to stop the flow ofthe liquid. The hot beverage will flow from the hot beverage outlet 132,through the hot beverage inlet 151 and into the heat exchanger 160 ofthe cooling subsystem 150. Thus, once the valve 124 of the hot watersupply subsystem 110 is opened, flow of the liquid/water from the watertank 111 to the cooling subsystem 150 occurs via gravity without anyvalves impeding flow.

Once the controller 199 detects that the hot beverage has entered intothe hot beverage cooling tank 161 of the heat exchanger 160, thecontroller 199 will activate the air flow generator 152 so that it willbegin to stream air (i.e., the air flow stream 159) over and across theheat exchanger 160. In some embodiments, the controller 199 will be madeaware of the existence of the hot beverage in the hot beverage coolingtank 161 based on signals sent from a liquid level sensor located in thehot beverage cooling tank 161. However, the invention is not to be solimited and the controller 199 may use other mechanisms for determiningwhether the hot beverage is present in the hot beverage cooling tank161, including a mass or weight sensor, a temperature sensor, any sensorthat may detect the presence or absence of liquid, or any other sensorthat may be used to inform the controller 199 of the existence of thehot beverage in the hot beverage cooling tank 161.

Although described herein that the controller 199 only activates the airflow generator 152 when the hot beverage is detected in the hot beveragecooling tank 161, the invention is not to be so limited and in otherembodiments the air flow generator 152 may always be activated so longas the integrated apparatus 100 is powered on. In other embodiments, theair flow generator 152 may operate on a cycle independent of the brewingcycles such that the air flow generator activates for five, ten,fifteen, twenty, or the like minutes and then deactivates for five, ten,fifteen, twenty, or the like minutes. Thus, the air flow generator 152operation may be controlled by the controller 199, it may be preset andoperate independently from the controller 199 in accordance with apredetermined schedule, or it may do some combination of the two.

While the hot beverage is stationary within the hot beverage coolingtank 161, the hot beverage cools over time due to the heat from the hotbeverage transferring into the hot beverage cooling tank 161 and fromthere into the ambient environment. This transfer of heat from the hotbeverage to the hot beverage cooling tank 161 occurs as a result of heatconduction (when two objects having different temperatures are incontact, heat flows from a hotter material to a cooler material untilthey are in thermal equilibrium). As noted herein, the hot beverage doesnot move during this cooling process, but rather remains in a non-movingstationary position within the hot beverage cooling tank 161 with theair stream 159 generated by the air flow generator 152 flowing over thehot beverage cooling tank 161.

While the hot beverage is in the hot beverage cooling tank 161, thesecond temperature sensor 163 continually monitors the temperature ofthe hot beverage in the hot beverage cooling tank 161 and transmits thetemperature readings to the controller 199. Upon the second temperaturesensor 163 detecting that the hot beverage has cooled to the cooltemperature threshold (in some embodiments approximately roomtemperature, although exemplary and non-limiting temperature ranges forthe cool temperature threshold are provided herein above), the secondtemperature sensor 163 transmits this information to the controller 199.Then, the controller 199 opens the cooled beverage valve 154 to allowthe cooled beverage to flow from the hot beverage cooling tank 161 ofthe cooling subsystem 150 into the cool beverage reservoir 171 of thefreezing subsystem 170.

In some embodiments, once in the cool beverage reservoir 171 of thefreezing subsystem 170, the cooled beverage will immediately passthrough the outlet 176 in the floor 174 of the cool beverage reservoir171 so that it can cascade over the beverage ice maker 172 as discussedabove. In other embodiments, the controller 199 may control flow of thecooled beverage from the cool beverage reservoir 171 using a valvesystem as discussed above. The cooled beverage continues to flow overthe beverage ice maker 172 with the excess cooled beverage being caughtby the excess beverage trough 178 and pumped back to the cool beveragereservoir 171 as described above. Once a sufficient amount of the liquidhas frozen, the beverage ice cubes 180 are removed from the beverage icemaker 172 and transported to the freezer compartment 173 where they canbe accessed by a user via the door 301 in the second housing 300 of theintegrated apparatus 100.

In one embodiment, the entire process from filling the water tank 111with water to forming beverage ice cubes may be automated and may occurwithout any user intervention required. Specifically, the controller 199may be configured to automatically start a brewing cycle upon receivinga signal that the freezer compartment 173 is low on beverage ice cubes.

Specifically, in such embodiment a sensor in the freezer compartment 173will inform the processor 199 that the freezer compartment 173 is low onbeverage ice cubes, and in response the controller 199 will cause waterto be filled into the water tank 111 (via the water supply inlet 116)and will then begin opening and closing valves as heating and coolingrequirements of the water and beverage formed therefrom are met as setforth herein. In such an embodiment, the only action that might berequired by a user is to ensure that a fresh batch of the additive islocated within the mixing apparatus 133, although this part of theprocess could also be automated in some embodiments.

Thus, using the integrated apparatus, a liquid such as water may beheated, mixed with an additive to convert it to a hot beverage, cooled,and then turned to ice. This entire process, possibly excluding the iceformation process, may occur solely via gravity without the use of anypumps. Furthermore, this entire process may occur automatically simplyby a user pressing a button or otherwise actuating the actuator 252 tosend a brewing activation signal to the controller 199. There is aminimum of user interaction required for the entire process of providingwater, brewing coffee from the water, and then turning that brewedcoffee into ice cubes. This ensures that beverage or coffee ice cubesare always available within the integrated apparatus 100 and ready foraddition to a drink to create an iced beverage without the typicaldilution caused by standard water ice cubes.

Referring to FIGS. 15-23, another embodiment of an integrated apparatusfor forming frozen beverage blocks (hereinafter “integrated apparatus”)600 is illustrated and will be described along with a related method offorming frozen beverage blocks. Much of the above-provided disclosure isapplicable to the embodiments described below and will not be repeatedherein in the interest of brevity. Thus, it should be appreciated thatthe description above may explain the details of various elements,components, parts, and the like that are not described in detail hereinbelow. To be clear, the integrated apparatus 600 is very similar to theintegrated apparatus 100 except that in the integrated apparatus 600there is no brewing and there are additional components involved in thecooling process that were not included in the integrated apparatus 600.However, there is a great deal of overlap in the different embodimentsand the overlapping structures and process steps may not be described indetail below with reference to FIGS. 15-23, it being understood that thedescription above is fully applicable.

In the exemplified embodiment, the integrated apparatus 600 does nothave the capability to brew a beverage. In fact, in the exemplifiedembodiment the integrated apparatus 600 does not even have thecapability to heat a beverage or liquid. Thus, the integrated apparatus600 does not mix a liquid such as water with a bed of additives to formthe beverage. Rather, in the exemplified embodiment of the integratedapparatus 600, the beverage is pre-made and then poured into orotherwise made to flow into the integrated apparatus 600 so that thebeverage can be cooled if needed and then turned into frozen beverageblocks. The process of receiving the beverage and converting it intofrozen beverage blocks may be fully automated in some embodiments withno action required by a human operator, except possibly to press a poweror start button to initiate the operation. In some embodiments, a userneed not even press a power or start button but the act of introducingthe beverage into the integrated apparatus 600 may initiate operation.For example, a controller may detect that a beverage has been introducedand may automatically start the process of converting the beverage intofrozen beverage blocks as described herein.

The term beverage as used herein includes any liquid that is intendedfor drinking, such as coffee, tea, soda, juice, hot chocolate or thelike. Although in most preferable embodiments the beverage is a liquidother than pure water (although it could be water-based), in otherembodiments the term beverage could also include pure water and theintegrated apparatus 600 could be used to form traditional iceblocks/cubes made from water rather than frozen beverage blocks madefrom a non-water liquid. The integrated apparatus 600 converts thebeverage into frozen beverage blocks so that the frozen beverage blockscan be added into a cup or glass containing the same beverage that wasused to form the frozen beverage blocks. In this way, the beverage inthe cup or glass can be chilled or cooled without diluting its taste.The frozen beverage blocks could also be added into a glass or cupcontaining a beverage that is different than the one that was used tocreate the frozen beverage blocks to create a different flavor profileor the like if so desired.

In certain embodiments, the beverage is intended to be a hot beverage,such as hot coffee, hot tea, hot chocolate, or the like. Morespecifically, the beverage, at least when initially poured into theintegrated apparatus 600, is intended to have a temperature that isgreater than 104° F., greater than 110° F., greater than 130° F.,greater than 150° F., or the like. When a hot beverage is used, theintegrated apparatus 600 is intended to cool the beverage and thenconvert the beverage from a liquid into a plurality of frozen blocks orcubes. Specifically, the integrated apparatus 600 will cool the hotbeverage to a temperature that is at or below 104° F., and then proceedto convert the beverage from its liquid form into a solid frozen form.This is because it takes far too long to convert a hot beverage that isabove 110° F., for example, into a frozen block in a freezing subsystemwithout first cooling the hot beverage to a temperature that is at orbelow 104° F. in a cooling subsystem. It should be appreciated that theintegrated apparatus 600 could work just as well with a non-heatedliquid, such as a liquid at or below room temperature or a liquid at orbelow 104° F. upon its first introduction into the integrated apparatus600. The integrated apparatus 600 simply has the capability of cooling abeverage before turning it into frozen blocks or cubes, but this coolingcapability need not be used each time the integrated apparatus 600operates.

Referring first to FIGS. 15 and 23, the integrated apparatus 600 will bedescribed. The integrated apparatus 600 generally comprises a firsthousing 601 that houses a beverage receiving subsystem 602 and a coolingsubsystem 603 and a second housing 604 that houses a freezing subsystem605. The first and second housings 601, 604 are coupled together so thatthe beverage receiving subsystem 602, the cooling subsystem 603, and thefreezing subsystem 605 are fluidly coupled together so that a beveragesuch as coffee, tea, or the like can be cooled if needed and then turnedinto frozen beverage blocks by flowing through the beverage receivingsubsystem 602, the cooling subsystem 603, and the freezing subsystem605. The term frozen beverage blocks are intended to include a frozenstructure having any desired shape, including cube-shaped, round,animal-shaped, theme-shaped or the like. Thus, the invention is in noway limited by the shape of the frozen beverage blocks that are formedusing the integrated apparatus 600.

In the exemplified embodiment, the front surface of the first housing601 of the integrated apparatus 600 includes a control panel 610 andmeasuring indicia 615. Referring to FIG. 15A, in the exemplifiedembodiment the control panel 610 comprises several buttons that can beactuated by a user to initiate various processes/operations using theintegrated apparatus 600. For example, in the exemplified embodiment thecontrol panel 610 comprises a power button for powering the integratedapparatus 600 on and off, a silent button for reducing the sound levelbeing emitted, a clean button to initiate a cleaning cycle, and a resetbutton to reset the process/operation. The control panel 610 alsocomprises several indicator lights including working (indicating thatthe integrated apparatus is currently working to produce frozen beverageblocks), low coffee (indicating that additional coffee or other beverageshould be added to the hot beverage reservoir, described below, ifoperation is desired to continue), service (indicating that maintenanceis needed on the integrated apparatus), and ready (indicating that theintegrated apparatus is ready for operation). Of course, more or lessindicators and buttons could be added and incorporated into the controlpanel as needed.

In the exemplified embodiment, the measuring indicia 615 is provided ona transparent or translucent portion of the first housing 601 so that auser can see the liquid level of the beverage in the hot beveragereservoir 606 and determine how much of the beverage is in the hotbeverage reservoir 606 using the measuring indicia 615. The measuringindicia 615 is provided in liters and quarts in the exemplifiedembodiment, but could be in any measurement units as may be desired. Themeasuring indicia 615 could also be omitted in some embodiments.

The second housing 604 houses the components that are used to form thebeverage blocks (i.e., the freezing subsystem 605) and also includes astorage area 590 for storing the beverage blocks after they are formed.The second housing 604 comprises a door 591 that can be moved from aclosed position (FIG. 15) to an open position (not shown) to provide auser with access to the beverage blocks in the storage area 590. Thus,when a user needs to add beverage blocks to a drink, a user will openthe door 591, remove one or more of the beverage blocks from the storagearea 590, and add the beverage blocks to a cup in order to cool a liquidbeverage.

Referring to FIGS. 15, 16, 17, and 24 concurrently, the integratedapparatus 600 will be further described. The beverage receivingsubsystem 602 generally comprises a hot beverage reservoir 606. In theexemplified embodiment, the hot beverage reservoir 606 comprises a lid607 that is alterable from an open state (FIG. 15) to a closed state.When in the open state, a beverage can be poured into the hot beveragereservoir 606 and when in the closed state the beverage is preventedfrom being poured into the hot beverage reservoir 606. The lid 607 maybe altered into the open state by pivoting the lid 607 as depicted inthe exemplified embodiment, removing the lid 607 from the integratedapparatus 600 completely, or by other means.

The hot beverage reservoir 606 is generally a container or the likehaving an open top end that can be closed by the lid 607, a closedbottom end, and a sidewall extending from the closed bottom end to theopen top end. Thus, the hot beverage reservoir 606 defines an interiorspace that is configured to hold a volume of a liquid beverage. The hotbeverage reservoir 606 comprises an opening 608 in its bottom end or inits sidewall near the bottom end so that the beverage can flow from theinterior space defined by the hot beverage reservoir 606 into thecooling subsystem 603. This can be best seen in FIG. 24.

The hot beverage reservoir 606 may also comprise an overflow opening 609in its sidewall near its open top end. The overflow opening 609 may beoperably coupled to a drain or other discharge location via a conduit610 so that if too much of the beverage is poured into the hot beveragereservoir 606 it can be discharged safely to a desired location ratherthan having it overflow and create a mess.

The cooling subsystem 603 generally comprises a cooling tube 611 and achiller tank 612. The cooling subsystem 603 is downstream of thebeverage receiving subsystem 602 and the chiller tank 612 is downstreamof the cooling tube 611. Thus, during use, the beverage flows from thehot beverage reservoir 606 to the cooling tube 611, through the coolingtube 611 and then into the chiller tank 612. The beverage then rests oris held within the chiller tank 612 until its temperature is measured tobe at or below a predetermined threshold temperature, as discussed aboveand as will be discussed further below. Thus, the beverage is held inthe chiller tank 612 and prevented from exiting the chiller tank 612until the temperature of the beverage is measured to be at or below thepredetermined threshold temperature. The cooling subsystem 603 alsocomprises an air flow generator or fan device 626 that is configured togenerate an air flow that is blown across the cooling tube 611 and thechiller tank 612 to cool the beverage as it flows through the coolingtube 611 and as it is held within the chiller tank 612. In theexemplified embodiment, there are three air flow generators 626positioned side-by-side within the housing 601, although more or lessthan three air flow generators 626 could be used in other embodiments.

In the exemplified embodiment, the air flow generators 626 areconfigured to blow ambient temperature air across the cooling tube 611and the chiller tank 612 to cool the beverage. This is effective incertain embodiments because generally the beverage is in excess of 130°F. or 150° F. when first poured into the hot beverage reservoir 606 andas described herein the air flow generators 626 are only needed toreduce the temperature of the beverage to at or below 104° F. Thus, solong as the air being blown is cooler than the beverage, the air will beeffective at cooling the beverage. Thus, blowing ambient temperature airacross the cooling tube 611 and the chiller tank 612 will cool thebeverage as it flows therethrough because the beverage is at a highertemperature than ambient. Ambient temperature may be between 70° F. and80° F. in some embodiments.

Referring to FIGS. 18-20, the cooling tube 611 and the chiller tank 612of the cooling subsystem 603 will be described in greater detail. Thecooling tube 611 generally comprises a tube portion 613 and a pluralityof fins 614 coupled to and extending from the tube portion 613. Morespecifically, the tube portion 613 comprises an inner surface thatdefines a flow passageway for the beverage and an outer surface oppositethe inner surface. The plurality of fins 614 are coupled to the outersurface of the tube portion 613 and extend therefrom to enhance thecooling of a beverage flowing through the flow passageway. The pluralityof fins 614 are arranged on the outer surface of the tube portion 613 ina spaced apart manner and in the exemplified embodiment they extendradially from the tube portion 613. The fins 614 help to remove heatfrom the beverage as the beverage flows through the cooling tube 611,thereby reducing the temperature of the beverage.

In the exemplified embodiment, each of the fins 614 is in the shape of arounded disc, although the invention is not to be so limited in allembodiments and the fins 614 may take on other shapes as may be desired.In the exemplified embodiment, the tube portion 613 may be formed fromstainless steel and the fins 614 may be formed from aluminum due to thehigher thermal conductivity of aluminum as compared to stainless steel.Of course, other materials may be used for the tube portion 613 and thefins 614 so long as they permit the beverage to flow through and becooled within the cooling tube 611 as described herein. For example, insome embodiments the entirety of the cooling tube 611 may be formed fromstainless steel or aluminum, rather than having portions thereof formedfrom different ones of those materials. Other metals or thermallyconductive materials may be used, such as copper, zinc, tungsten,nickel, magnesium, gold, chromium, or the like.

In the exemplified embodiment, the cooling tube 611 is arranged in aserpentine shape and defines a serpentine-shaped flow path. Statedanother way, the cooling tube 611 is curved or otherwise bent into aplurality of side-by-side U-shapes with the bight of each U beinglocated opposite the bight of an adjacent U. The serpentine shape formsa curved flow path having multiple turns. More specifically, in theexemplified embodiment the cooling tube 611 comprises a first section615 having a serpentine shape with multiple turns located adjacent tothe hot beverage reservoir 606 and a second section 616 having aserpentine shape with multiple turns located between the first section615 and the chiller tank 612.

The first section 615 of the cooling tube 611 is oriented at a firstangle relative to a horizontal plane and the second section 616 of thecooling tube 611 is oriented at a second angle relative to thehorizontal plane (FIG. 20). Thus, the first and second sections 615, 616collectively form a V-shape due to the angled orientation of the firstand second sections 615, 616. The angling of the first and secondsections 615, 616 of the cooling tube 611 is important in someembodiments because it allows the beverage to flow through the flowpassageway of the cooling tube 611 passively solely due to gravitywithout the need for any pumps or other forced flow mechanisms to drivethe movement of the beverage. Simply by angling the cooling tube 611relative to a horizontal plane, the beverage will naturally andpassively flow through the cooling tube 611 to the chiller tank 612 bythe force of gravity.

The first section 615 of the cooling tube 611 is positioned directlyabove the second section 616 of the cooling tube 611. As a result, thecooling tube 611 takes up less space while maximizing the length of theflow passageway defined by the cooling tube 611 to maximize cooling ofthe beverage. The longer the period of time that the beverage is flowingthrough the cooling tube 611 the more the beverage will get cooled(assuming that the temperature of the beverage is above ambienttemperature). Thus, by using the serpentine shape and verticallystacking the first and second sections 615, 616 of the cooling tube 611,maximum cooling of the beverage can be achieved within a small overallspace. This is important because the integrated apparatus 600 may beused and stored in a coffee shop, for example, and such coffee shopstend to be quite small with little extra space for such machines. Thus,by minimizing the space taken up by the cooling tube 611 whilemaximizing the cooling result achieved therein, the integrated apparatus600 can be made smaller to fit in smaller cafes and the like. In fact,in alternative embodiments additional “sections” can be added to thecooling tube 611 which will increase the vertical height of the coolingtube 611 but not the width and depth of the cooling tube 611, if anadditional length of the cooling tube 611 would be desirable to provideadditional time for the beverage to cool while flowing through thecooling tube 611.

The cooling tube 611 comprises an inlet 617 and an outlet 618. The inlet617 is operably coupled to the first section 615 of the cooling tube 611and provides a location at which the beverage can enter into the coolingtube 611 from the hot beverage reservoir 606. The outlet 618 is operablycoupled to the second section 616 of the cooling tube 611 and provides alocation at which the beverage can flow from the cooling tube 611 to thechiller tank 612.

The chiller tank 612 comprises a tank portion 619 comprising a cavityfor holding the beverage and a heat sink 620 coupled to and extendingfrom the tank portion 619. The chiller tank 612 is very similar to theheat exchanger 160 described above, and thus the details of the chillertank 612 will not be provided herein, it being understood that thedetails of the heat exchanger 160 described above are applicable. Thus,although there is no view of the chiller tank 612 that allowsvisualization of the cavity that it comprises, these features should beunderstood from the description of the heat exchanger 160 above andFIGS. 10-13. The main difference is that where the heat exchanger 160comprises heat dissipating elements on both sides thereof, the chillertank 612 includes a heat sink 620 with heat dissipating elements on onlyone side thereof. As best seen in FIG. 20, the chiller tank 612 isoriented at an angle relative to a horizontal plane to ensure that thebeverage contained therein flows to the outlet 621 of the chiller tank612 via gravity.

Referring to FIGS. 16, 17, and 23, the freezing subsystem 605 will bebriefly described. The freezing subsystem 605 generally comprises a coolbeverage reservoir 622 and an evaporator 623. The evaporator 623 is thesame as the evaporator or beverage ice maker 172 described above in theprevious embodiment and thus it will not be described in great detailherein, it being understood that the description provided above isapplicable. Furthermore, the general manner in which the freezingsub-system 605 generates or forms frozen beverage blocks using theevaporator 623 will not be described, it having been described in detailabove. However, generally, the freezing subsystem 605 comprises a pump624 for pumping the beverage from the cool beverage reservoir 622 to thetop of the evaporator 623, where the beverage is allowed to cascade downthe evaporator 623 and turn to frozen beverage blocks. Portions of thebeverage that do not freeze flow back into the cool beverage reservoir622 where they are again pumped to the top of the evaporator 623 andmade to cascade down the evaporator. Thus, there is a closed-loop flowbetween the cool beverage reservoir 622 and the evaporator 623 toachieve the freezing of the beverage into the frozen beverage blocks650. This process continues in as many cycles as are needed to freeze asufficient amount of the beverage to form the frozen beverage blocks650. The freezing subsystem 605 also comprises a conduit 624 thatfacilitates the flow of the beverage from the cool beverage reservoir622 to the top of the evaporator 623.

In the exemplified embodiment, the pump 624 is an Axel Mag Pump (e.g., amagnetic pump that uses an impeller to create suction to move thebeverage from the cool beverage reservoir 622 to the top end of theevaporator 623). However, the invention is not to be so limited in allembodiments and other types of pumps may be used in other embodiments.

The pump 624 of the exemplified embodiment is intended to be mountedhorizontally within the integrated apparatus 600 so that the propellerof the pump 624 is not submerged within the beverage. This is donebecause when the propeller is submerged, it has the potential to churnthe beverage into foam which is undesirable. The actuation of theimpeller of the pump 624 is created by magnets inside of the pump 624,which increases the life-cycle of the pump 624. The pump 624 may have acustomizable suction power, and hence a customizable flow rate. In theexemplified embodiment, the pump 624 is configured to operate with aflow rate of 0.3 to 2.0 gallons per minute, more specifically 0.5 to 1.5gallons per minute, and still more specifically 0.7 to 1.0 gallons perminute. It has been determined that flow rates above the higher pointsin the ranges provided may cause the beverage to foam, which asmentioned is undesirable because the foam can spill out of theintegrated apparatus 600 and such foam makes for poor frozen beverageblocks.

Referring to FIGS. 21-24, the freezer subsystem 605 will be furtherdescribed. The cool beverage reservoir 622 comprises a collection trough670 and a collection tank 671 that are fluidly coupled together. Thecollection trough 671 comprises a cavity 627 and the collection tank 671comprises a cavity 672 that are collectively configured to hold a volumeof the beverage. The collection trough 670 comprises a floor 673 and asidewall 674 extending from the floor 673 to an open top end. There aremultiple openings in the floor 673 of the collection trough 670.Specifically, there is a first opening 675 in the floor 673 of thecollection trough 670 to permit the beverage to flow from the collectiontrough 670 into the collection tank 671. The collection tank 671 has amuch smaller volume capacity than the collection trough 670, so only asmall percentage of the beverage will flow from the collection trough670 into the collection tank 671 before the collection tank 671 is full.Thus, in the cool beverage reservoir 622, most of the beverage will belocated in the collection trough 670 and a portion of the beverage willflow into the collection tank 671.

There is a second opening 676 in the floor 673 of the collection trough670 through which a pump conduit 677 extends. The pump conduit 677 has afirst end 678 that is located in the cavity 672 of the collection tank671 and a second end 679 that is coupled to the pump 624. Thus, thebeverage that is pumped from the cool beverage reservoir 622 is takendirectly from the cavity 672 of the collection tank 671. Specifically,during operation the pump 624 pulls the beverage from the cavity 672 ofthe collection tank 671, through the pump conduit 677, and then to theevaporator 623 to form the frozen beverage blocks 650 as describedherein. This ensures that the pump 624 is always pulling the beveragefrom the lower-most or deepest point of the cool beverage reservoir 622(i.e., from within the cavity 672 of the collection tank 671) to preventair from being pulled into the pump 624. Of course, in alternativeembodiments the collection tank 671 could be omitted and the beveragecould be pulled from a bottom region of the cavity 627 of the collectiontrough 670. However, it has been found that using the collection tank671 is the most effective way to ensure that no air is pulled in throughthe pump, which can create an undesirable result in terms of frozenbeverage block formation. As can be seen, the pump 624 is horizontallyoriented and is entirely removed from the cavity 627 of the collectiontrough 670 such that no part of the pump 624 is submerged in thebeverage during operation as noted above.

Furthermore, as best seen in FIGS. 22 and 23, an evaporator lip 628 iscoupled to a bottom end of the evaporator 623 and protrudes from one ofthe two opposing major surfaces of the evaporator 623. In theexemplified embodiment, the evaporator lip 628 is an L-shaped componentsuch that a horizontally extending lip thereof extends perpendicularlyfrom the evaporator 623. The evaporator lip 628 is intended to catch thebeverage as it flows down the evaporator 623 before the beverage is ableto fall into the cavity 627 of the cool beverage reservoir 622. Thus, asshown in FIG. 22, the beverage falls, flows, or cascades down the frontsurface of the evaporator 623 during use. As the beverage cascades downthe front surface of the evaporator 623, some of the beverage freezesand remains coupled to the evaporator 623 within one of the grid-likeopenings and the rest of the beverage remains in liquid form and fallsuntil it contacts the evaporator lip 628. The evaporator lip 628 issecured tight against the front surface of the evaporator 623. Thus, thebeverage flows along the evaporator lip 628 prior to falling into thecavity 627 of the collection trough 670 cool beverage reservoir 623.

Even more specifically, the integrated apparatus 600 also comprises aflap member 680 that is pivotably coupled to the collection trough 670.The flap member 680 is capable of pivoting or rotating about arotational axis Z-Z. The flap member 680 has a first end 681 that islocated very close to the evaporator lip 628 and a second end 682 thatis located within the cavity 627 of the collection trough 670 of thecool beverage reservoir 622. Thus, the beverage will flow along theevaporator lip 628 until it reaches a distal end of the horizontalportion of the evaporator lip 628, at which time the beverage will flowonto the flap member 680. The beverage will then flow along the flapmember 680 and into the cavity 627 of the collection trough 670 andeventually will flow off of the flap member 680 at the second end 682 ofthe flap member 680 and into the cavity 627 of the collection trough670. Because the second end 682 of the flap member 680 is located in thecollection trough 670, this results in a very short drop for thebeverage, if there is any drop at all, dependent on the level of thebeverage that is already present in the collection trough 670.

For example, if the second end 682 of the flap member 680 is submergedin the beverage, the beverage that is flowing down the flap member 680will simply flow directly into the beverage in the collection trough670. If the second end 682 of the flap member 680 is not submerged inthe beverage, the beverage flowing down the flap member 680 will falloff of the second end 682 of the flap member 680 and free fall until iteither contacts the floor 673 of the collection trough 670 or until itcontacts any other beverage that is already in the collection trough670. In either case, having the flap member 680 extending into thecavity 627 of the collection trough 670 reduces the distance that thebeverage free falls into the collection trough 670, which prevents thebeverage from foaming. If the beverage were to free fall from theevaporator 623 into the collection trough 670 (i.e., if the evaporatorlip 628 and/or the flap member 680 were omitted), the impact of thebeverage with the floor 673 of the collection trough 670 or with anyother beverage already in the collection trough 670 would create foamdue to the free fall distance of the beverage. The structure depicted inFIG. 22 and described above reduces this distance, thereby reducing oreliminating foam generation.

Thus, the evaporator lip 628, alone and/or in combination with the flapmember 680, prevents the beverage from cascading down the front surfaceof the evaporator 623 and immediately falling into the cool beveragereservoir 622, which would require the beverage to fall a distance of2-3 inches or so depending on the volume of the beverage that is in thecool beverage reservoir 622 at the time. The reason that this isimportant is that if the beverage were coffee, for example, the act ofthe coffee falling from the evaporator 623 into the cool beveragereservoir 622 would cause the coffee to foam upon impact. Specifically,the coffee free-falling the 2-3 inches into the cool beverage reservoir622 before contacting the floor of the cool beverage reservoir 622 orother beverage located in the cool beverage reservoir 622 would causethe coffee (and some other beverages) to foam. Because the coffee iscold as it is being turned to a frozen coffee block by the evaporator623, the coffee foam becomes thick and compounds. Thus, the foam wouldbuild over time and eventually spill out of the cool beverage reservoir622 and down the back of the integrated apparatus 600, causing a fairlylarge mess. The foam would also eventually be passed through the pump624 which would cause the frozen beverage blocks to have large airbubbles in them, which is not ideal.

Thus, the evaporator lip 628 allows the coffee (or other beverage) tocontinue flowing along parts of the machine into the cool beveragereservoir 622 rather than free-falling for too great of a distancebefore the beverage makes impact within the cool beverage reservoir 622or any beverage already present therein. As a result, the beverage(i.e., coffee) does not foam (or any foam generated is minimal) and thefrozen beverage blocks that are formed are free of air bubbles and foamdoes not leak out of the machine. Thus, when the machine is being usedto make coffee or other beverages that may foam upon impact as describedherein, the evaporator lip 628 is important for successful operation ofthe integrated apparatus 600.

Referring to FIG. 24, the electronic components of the integratedapparatus 600 will be described. The integrated apparatus 600 comprisesa first controller 630 and a second controller 660 that control theprocess steps and method of operation of the integrated apparatus 600.Thus, the first and second controllers 630, 660 may be any computer orcentral processing unit (CPU), microprocessor, micro-controller,computational device, or circuit configured for executing some or all ofthe processes described herein, including without limitation: (1)activation and deactivation of an air flow generator; and (2) openingand closing of valves, based on input received from various sensors. Thefirst and second controllers 630, 660 may include, without limitation,any suitable volatile or non-volatile memory including random accessmemory (RAM) and various types thereof, read-only memory (ROM) andvarious types thereof, USB flash memory, and magnetic or optical datastorage devices (e.g. internal/external hard disks, floppy discs,magnetic tape CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, optical disk, ZIP™ drive, Blu-ray disk,and others), which may be written to and/or read by the processor whichis operably connected thereto. The memory device may store algorithmsand/or calculations that can be used (by the processor) to determinewhen to open/close and activate/deactivate the various electricalcomponents of the system described herein. The first and secondcontrollers 630, 660 may include or be operably coupled to a powersource in some embodiments as has been described in detail above.

The integrated apparatus 600 comprises a first liquid level sensor 631that is configured to detect when a liquid level of the beverage in thechiller tank 612 is at or above an upper threshold, a second liquidlevel sensor 632 that is configured to detect when a liquid level of thebeverage in the cool beverage reservoir is at or above an upperthreshold, and a third liquid level sensor 633 that is configured todetect when a liquid level of the beverage in the cool beveragereservoir is at or below a lower threshold. The first and second liquidlevel sensors 631, 632 are operably coupled to the first controller 630so that the first controller 630 can use the information/data providedto it by the first and second liquid level sensors 631, 632 to controlthe opening and closing of valves, the fan device 626, and the like asdescribed herein. The third liquid level sensor 633 is operably coupledto the second controller 660 so that the second controller 660 cancontrol the activation/deactivation of the pump 624, and the like, asdescribed herein.

In the exemplified embodiment, the integrated apparatus comprises afirst valve 634 downstream of the hot beverage reservoir 606 andupstream of the cooling tube 611 of the cooling subsystem 603 and asecond valve 635 downstream of the chiller tank 612 of the coolingsubsystem 603 and upstream of the cool beverage reservoir 622 of thefreezing subsystem 605. In the exemplified embodiment, each of the firstand second valves 634, 635 is operably coupled to the first controller630. The fan device 626 is also operably coupled to the first controller630 as shown in FIG. 24. The pump 624 and the third liquid level sensor633 are operably coupled to the second controller 660. Thus, the firstcontroller 630 is able to control the opening and closing of the firstand second valves 634, 635 and activation/deactivation of the fan device626 and the second controller 660 is able to control activation anddeactivation of the pump 624 based on information they receive from thevarious sensors including the first, second, and third liquid levelsensors 631, 632, 633, and a temperature sensor 636, as describedherein.

Referring to FIGS. 24 and 25, operation of the integrated apparatus 600in accordance with a method of forming frozen beverage blocks will bedescribed. The first step in the process is to introduce a beverage intothe hot beverage reservoir 606 of the beverage receiving subsystem 601(Step 701). This can include pouring the beverage from a differentcontainer, cup, or the like into the hot beverage reservoir 606,transporting the beverage through a conduit into the hot beveragereservoir 606, or the like. In some embodiments, upon introducing thebeverage into the hot beverage reservoir 606, the beverage willimmediately flow into the cooling subsystem 603 (Step 702). In otherembodiments, a user must first press power or start on the control panel610 of the integrated apparatus 600 before the beverage will flow fromthe hot beverage reservoir 606 to the cooling subsystem 603. Thus, insome embodiments the first valve 634 is closed until a user presses thepower button on the control panel 610, and such pressing of the powerbutton will cause the first controller 630 to open the first valve 634.In other embodiments, the first valve 634 may be omitted or only used toprevent the beverage from flowing out of the hot beverage reservoir 606when the chiller tank 612 is full, as described directly below.

The opening and closing of the first valve 634 may also, oralternatively, be controlled in another way. Specifically, as notedabove the first liquid level sensor 631 provides information to thefirst controller 630 regarding the level of the beverage in the chillertank 612. Thus, if the first liquid level sensor 631 measures the liquidlevel of the beverage in the chiller tank 612 to be above apre-determined upper threshold, the controller may close the first valve634 to ensure that additional amounts of the beverage do not flow intothe chiller tank 612 to prevent the chiller tank 612 from overflowing.In other embodiments, additional amounts of the beverage may simply beheld in the cooling tube 611 and in a first conduit 640 that extendsbetween the hot beverage reservoir 606 and the cooling tube 611 if thechiller tank 612 is full and cannot hold any more of the beverage. Thus,in some embodiments the first liquid level sensor 631 may also beomitted.

As noted above, the beverage that is poured or otherwise introduced intothe hot beverage reservoir 606 may be hot, such as above 104° F., above110° F., above 130° F., above 150° F., above 170° F., or the like.However, this is not required and the beverage could have anytemperature desired including temperatures below 104° F. Once thebeverage is released from the hot beverage reservoir 606, the beverageflows through the first conduit 640 and into the passageway of thecooling tube 611 of the cooling subsystem 610. In some embodiments, thefan device 626 is operating to generate an air stream or to blow coolair as soon as a user presses the start or power button on the controlpanel 610. In other embodiments, the first controller 630 may activatethe fan device 626 as soon as the beverage flows from the hot beveragereservoir 606 into the cooling subsystem 603. Either way, as thebeverage flows through the cooling tube 611 of the cooling subsystem610, cooling air (which may be at ambient temperature) generated by thefan device 626 is blown across the cooling tube 611 to cool thebeverage, if such cooling is needed (i.e., if the beverage is above 104°F., or if the beverage has a temperature that is above ambient). In someembodiments, the fan device 626 may be operating even if the temperatureof the beverage is already below the predetermined threshold temperaturenoted herein. In some embodiments, the fan device 626 is activated bythe first controller 630 when the temperature sensor 636 measures thetemperature of the beverage to be at or above the predeterminedthreshold temperature.

As described above, in the exemplified embodiment the beverage flowsalong a serpentine flow path within the passageway of the cooling tube611. The heat of the beverage will dissipate through the tube portion613 and the fins 614 of the cooling tube 611 to reduce the temperatureof the beverage as the cooling air generated by the fan device 626 isblown across the cooling tube 611. The beverage flows through thecooling tube 611 passively such that the flow is entirely gravity drivenbecause the cooling tube 611 is angled relative to a horizontal plane asdescribed above. Thus, the beverage will flow through the cooling tube611 being cooled all the while. Eventually, the beverage will reach theoutlet of the cooling tube 611, at which time the beverage will flowinto the cavity of the chiller tank 612.

The cooling air generated by the fan device 626 blows across the chillertank 612 to continue cooling the beverage while the beverage is locatedwithin the chiller tank 612. In some embodiments the cooling airgenerated by the fan device 626 may be blown simultaneously across thecooling tube 611 and the chiller tank 612. In other embodiments, thedirection at which the cooling air is blown may change depending on thelocation of the beverage in the system. Thus, if the beverage is in thecooling tube 611, the cooling air will be blown across the cooling tube611 and if the beverage is in the chiller tank 612, the cooling air willbe blown across the chiller tank 612.

When the beverage reaches the chiller tank 612, the second valve 635will generally be closed, at least initially, to hold the beverage inthe chiller tank 612 or prevent the beverage from exiting the chillertank 612 and flowing into the freezing subsystem 605 until thetemperature of the beverage in the chiller tank 612 is measured to be ator below a predetermined threshold temperature. In that regard, theintegrated apparatus 600 comprises a temperature sensor 636 that isconfigured to measure the temperature of the beverage that is locatedwithin the chiller tank 612 (Step 703). The temperature sensor 636 isoperably coupled to the first controller 630 so that the firstcontroller 630 can control the opening/closing of the second valve 635based on the temperature of the beverage in the chiller tank 612. If thetemperature sensor 636 measures the temperature of the beverage in thechiller tank 612 to be above the predetermined threshold temperature,the first controller 630 will keep the second valve 635 closed toprevent the beverage from exiting the chiller tank 612 (Step 704). Uponthe temperature sensor 636 measuring the temperature of the beverage inthe chiller tank 612 to be at or below the predetermined thresholdtemperature, the first controller 630 will open the second valve 635,thereby allowing the beverage to flow from the chiller tank 612 to thecool beverage reservoir 622 (Step 705). In the exemplified embodiment,the flow of the beverage from the chiller tank 612 to the cool beveragereservoir 622 is entirely passive and gravity driven such that no pumpsor other mechanisms are required to drive this flow. The beverage flowsalong a second conduit 641 from the chiller tank 612 to the coolbeverage reservoir 622.

In some embodiments, the flow rate of the beverage through the secondvalve 635 is in a range of 0.5 to 4 gallons per minute, morespecifically 0.5 to 3 gallons per minute, and still more specifically 1to 2 gallons per minute. The reason for this is that it ensures that thefirst controller 630 has sufficient time to re-close the second valve635 as soon as the temperature sensor 636 measures the temperature ofthe beverage to be above the predetermined threshold temperature. Forexample, in some embodiments the beverage may fill the chiller tank 612,the cooling tubes 611, the conduit 640, and the hot beverage reservoir606. The temperature sensor 636 is only measuring the temperature of thebeverage that is in the chiller tank 612. Thus, as soon as thetemperature of the beverage that is in the chiller tank 612 is at orbelow the predetermined threshold temperature, the first controller 630will open the valve and allow the beverage to flow into the freezingsubsystem 605. As soon as the temperature sensor 636 measures thebeverage to above the predetermined threshold temperature, the firstcontroller 630 will close the second valve 635. However, if the flow ofthe beverage through the second valve 635 is too fast, some of thehotter beverage that was located in the cooling tubes 611, the conduit640, and/or the hot beverage reservoir 606 may also flow through thesecond valve 635 before the first controller 630 has a chance to closethe second valve 635. Thus, by keeping the flow rate of the beveragethrough the second valve 635 to the range noted above, this can be keptto a minimum or prevented.

In the exemplified embodiment, the predetermined threshold temperaturemay be approximately 104° F. In some embodiments, approximately mayinclude a 10% increase or decrease from the provided value. In otherembodiments, the predetermined threshold temperature may be exactly 104°F. Thus, until the beverage in the chiller tank 612 reaches 104° F., thebeverage will be held in the chiller tank 612 and prevented from flowinginto the freezing subsystem 605. The reason for this is that if thebeverage is above 104° F., it will take far too long for the freezingsubsystem 605 to form frozen beverage blocks from the beverage. It hasbeen determined that 104° F. is an optimal temperature that results inan optimal time period in terms of both cooling the beverage in thecooling subsystem 603 and freezing the beverage in the freezingsubsystem 605. If one has to wait until the beverage temperature is muchbelow 104° F., it will take too long to cool the beverage in the coolingsubsystem 603 and if the beverage is released from the chiller tank 612when much above 104° F. it will take too long to freeze the beverage inthe freezing subsystem 605. Furthermore, temperatures hotter than 104°F. may damage the pump 624. In some embodiments, the predeterminedthreshold temperature may be in a range of 80° F. to 120° F., morespecifically 95° F. to 110° F., more specifically 100° F. to 105° F.,and more specifically approximately 104° F. Of course, if the beverageis already below the predetermined threshold temperature upon it beingintroduced into the hot beverage reservoir 606, the beverage will beimmediately released from the chiller tank 612 (so long as there issufficient space in the cool beverage reservoir 622 to receive thebeverage, as discussed below) because additional cooling of the beveragewill not be needed. Thus, the beverage may be introduced into theapparatus with a lower temperature without affecting the operation. Themachine is merely capable of cooling the beverage to below thepredetermined threshold temperature if such cooling is needed.

The entirety of the flow of the beverage along a first flow path fromthe hot beverage reservoir 606 of the beverage receiving subsystem tothe cool beverage reservoir 622 of the freezing subsystem 605 may begravity driven. This includes flow of the beverage from the hot beveragereservoir 606 through the first conduit 640, into and through thecooling tube 611, into the chiller tank 612, and from the chiller tank612 into and through the second conduit 641, and from the second conduit641 into the cool beverage reservoir 622. Although there are first andsecond valves 634, 635 located along the first flow path in theexemplified embodiment, there are no pumps or other components thatdrive the flow other than gravity.

Once a sufficient amount of the beverage is within the cool beveragereservoir 622 of the freezing subsystem 605, the freezing subsystem 605operates to convert the liquid beverage into frozen beverage blocks.During operation of the freezing subsystem 605, the beverage is pumpedby the pump 624 along a closed-loop flow path from the cool beveragereservoir 622 and through a cool beverage conduit 642 to a top end ofthe evaporator 623. Next, the beverage cascades down the evaporator 623until the beverage contacts the evaporator lip 628. Next, the beveragefalls from the evaporator lip 628 back into the cool beverage reservoir622 (possibly via the flap member 680 as described above). The beveragemay go through multiple cycles within the closed-loop flow path untilenough of the beverage has frozen to form frozen beverage cubes 650.Specifically, the evaporator is very cold and will eventually freeze thebeverage. However, because the beverage may initially be around 100° F.when it enters the freezing subsystem 105, it will likely take severalpasses of the beverage through the closed-loop flow path before itfreezes. As the beverage continues to cascade down the evaporator 623,more and more of the beverage freezes such that the beverage freezes inlayers within the openings in the evaporator 623 (which is in the formof a grid). This process is the same as the process described above withregard to the earlier described embodiment.

In this embodiment, there are two liquid level sensors in the coolbeverage reservoir 622, the second liquid level sensor 632 and the thirdliquid level sensor 633. As noted above, the second liquid level sensor632, which is operably coupled to the first controller 630, isconfigured to detect when a liquid level of the beverage in the coolbeverage reservoir 622 is at or above an upper threshold. The thirdliquid level sensor 633, which is operably coupled to the secondcontroller 660, is configured to detect when the liquid level of thebeverage in the cool beverage reservoir 622 is at or below a lowerthreshold. Thus, upon the liquid level of the beverage in the coolbeverage reservoir 622 being measured by the second liquid level sensor632 to be at or above the upper threshold (Step 706), the firstcontroller 630 may close the second valve 634, which is located upstreamof the cool beverage reservoir 622 and downstream of the chiller tank612, to prevent an additional amount of the beverage from flowing fromthe chiller tank 612 to the cool beverage reservoir 622 (Step 707). Thisprevents the beverage from overflowing the cool beverage reservoir 622.If the liquid level of the beverage in the cool beverage reservoir isnot above the upper threshold (Step 706), the second valve 635 will beopen if the temperature of the beverage in the chiller tank 612 is alsoat or below the threshold temperature. Thus, the opening and closing ofthe second valve 635 is controlled (by the first controller 630) by thetemperature detected by the temperature sensor 636 (closed whentemperature is above predetermined threshold and open when temperatureis below predetermined threshold) and by the second liquid level sensor632 (open when the liquid level is below the upper threshold and closedwhen the liquid level is at or above the upper threshold).

Furthermore, upon the liquid level of the beverage in the cool beveragereservoir 622 being measured by the third liquid level sensor 633 to beat or below the lower threshold (708), the second controller 660 maydeactivate the pump 624 and prevent the beverage from flowing throughthe closed-loop flow path (709). This is done when the liquid level istoo low to prevent the pump 624 from sucking in air. The reason is thatif the pump 624 sucks in air, foam will be generated in the beverage(particularly when the beverage is coffee). As noted above, such foam isundesirable as it creates frozen beverage blocks with air bubblestherein and other deformities and also may cause the beverage to foamand overflow out of the machine. When the liquid level of the beveragein the cool beverage reservoir 622 is measured to be above the lowerthreshold (Step 710), the pump 624 is activated and the beverage is madeto flow along the closed fluid flow path noted above. The pump willremain activated 624 and the beverage will undergo several cyclesthrough the closed fluid flow path as needed to freeze a sufficientamount of the beverage to form the frozen beverage blocks 650.

The invention described herein can be used to cool a hot beverage andthen convert the hot beverage from a liquid into frozen beverage blocks.Thus, for example, a user may brew a pot of coffee and then immediatelyintroduce the coffee into the integrated apparatus 600 without spendingany time pre-cooling the coffee. Thus, the coffee may be approximatelybetween 195° F. and 205° F. at the time that it is first introduced intothe hot beverage reservoir 606. The coffee will flow through the coolingtubes 611 and then be held in the chiller tank 612 while cooling airblows across the cooling tubes 611 and the chiller tank 612 to reducethe temperature of the coffee. The coffee will be prevented from exitingthe chiller tank 612 until the temperature of the coffee has beenreduced to at or below the threshold temperature, which in theexemplified embodiment is approximately 104° F. (or the ranges providedabove). Once the beverage temperature reaches the predeterminedthreshold temperature, the beverage may be released from the chillertank 612 into the freezing subsystem 605 where the beverage can beconverted from its liquid form to a solid, frozen form (i.e., frozencoffee blocks).

While the invention has been described with respect to specific examplesincluding presently preferred modes of carrying out the invention, thoseskilled in the art will appreciate that there are numerous variationsand permutations of the above described systems and techniques. It is tobe understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural andfunctional modifications may be made without departing from the scope ofthe present invention. Thus, the spirit and scope of the inventionshould be construed broadly as set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of forming frozen beverage blockscomprising: introducing a beverage into a beverage receiving reservoir;flowing the beverage from the beverage receiving reservoir into aholding tank; upon the temperature of the beverage in the holding tankbeing measured to be at or below a predetermined lower thresholdtemperature, allowing the beverage to flow from the holding tank into acool beverage reservoir of a freezing subsystem; and forming frozenbeverage blocks from the beverage in the freezing subsystem.
 2. Themethod according to claim 1 wherein the beverage flows from the beveragereceiving reservoir into the holding tank solely via gravity, andwherein the beverage flows from the holding tank into the freezingsubsystem solely via gravity.
 3. The method according to claim 1 whereinthe beverage flows along a first flow path, solely via gravity, from thebeverage receiving reservoir to the cool beverage reservoir of thefreezing subsystem, and wherein the beverage is pumped in multiplecycles along a second closed-loop flow path from the cool beveragereservoir, through a cool beverage conduit, along an evaporator, andback into the cool beverage reservoir during the formation of the frozenbeverage blocks.
 4. The method according to claim 1 further comprising:measuring the temperature of the beverage in the holding tank using atemperature sensor that is operably coupled to a controller; and uponthe temperature of the beverage being measured to be at or below thepredetermined lower threshold temperature, the controller opening avalve that allows the beverage to gravity flow from the holding tank tothe cool beverage reservoir of the freezing subsystem.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 1 wherein the beverage is coffee.
 6. The methodaccording to claim 1 wherein forming frozen beverage blocks from thebeverage comprises pumping the beverage from the cool beverage reservoirof the freezing subsystem to a top end of an evaporator of the freezingsubsystem with a pump that is operably coupled to a controller, thebeverage cascading downwardly along the evaporator of the freezingsubsystem from the top end of the evaporator to a bottom end of theevaporator and either freezing along the evaporator to form the frozenbeverage blocks or flowing back into the cool beverage reservoir,wherein the beverage flows continuously along a closed-loop flow pathbetween the cool beverage reservoir and the evaporator until either: (1)the pump is deactivated; or (2) the beverage freezes.
 7. The methodaccording to claim 6 wherein, prior to flowing from the evaporator backinto the cool beverage reservoir, the beverage flows along an evaporatorlip located along the bottom end of the evaporator and from theevaporator lip to a flap member that extends into the cool beveragereservoir to reduce a distance that the beverage free falls into thecool beverage reservoir and prevent the beverage from foaming.
 8. Themethod according to claim 6 further comprising flowing the beverage froma collection trough of the cool beverage reservoir into a collectiontank of the cool beverage reservoir through an opening in a floor of thecollection trough, and wherein the pump is fluidly coupled to thebeverage in the collection tank so that the beverage that is pumped tothe top end of the evaporator is taken directly from the collectiontank.
 9. The method according to claim 1 further comprising: measuring aliquid level of the beverage in the cool beverage reservoir of thefreezing subsystem using a second liquid level sensor that is operablycoupled to a controller; and upon the liquid level of the beverage inthe cool beverage reservoir being measured by the second liquid levelsensor to be at or above a predetermined upper threshold, the controllerclosing a second valve that is located downstream of the holding tankand upstream of the freezing subsystem so that the beverage cannot flowfrom the holding tank into the freezing subsystem.
 10. The methodaccording to claim 1 wherein the freezing subsystem comprises a pumpthat is mounted horizontally so that a propeller of the pump is notsubmerged within the beverage located within the cool beverage reservoirof the freezing subsystem.
 11. The method according to claim 10 whereinthe pump is operable to pump the beverage from the cool beveragereservoir at a flow rate between 0.3 and 2.0 gallons per minute.
 12. Anapparatus for forming frozen beverage blocks comprising: a beveragereceiving inlet configured to receive a beverage; a holding tankconfigured to hold the beverage that is introduced into the beveragereceiving inlet; a freezing subsystem comprising a cool beveragereservoir and an evaporator, the cool beverage reservoir comprising acollection trough that is configured to receive the beverage upon thebeverage being released from the holding tank and a collection tank, thecollection trough comprising a floor having an opening that provides apathway from the collection trough into the collection tank so that aportion of the beverage located in the collection trough flows into thecollection tank; a pump subsystem comprising a pump conduit having afirst end located in the collection tank of the cool beverage reservoirand a second end that is coupled to a pump; and wherein the pumpsubsystem is configured to pump the beverage from the cool beveragereservoir to a top of the evaporator, the beverage configured to cascadedown the evaporator and either freeze along the evaporator to form thefrozen beverage blocks from the beverage or flow back into the coolbeverage reservoir to be pumped once again to the top of the evaporator.13. The apparatus according to claim 12 wherein the collection troughhas a first volume and the collection tank has a second volume, thefirst volume being greater than the second volume.
 14. The apparatusaccording to claim 12 further comprising an evaporator lip coupled to abottom end of the evaporator and a flap member having an upper portionpositioned adjacent to the bottom end of the evaporator and a lowerportion located within the collection trough, and wherein portions ofthe beverage that cascade down the evaporator to the bottom end of theevaporator without freezing flow along the evaporator lip and the flapmember whereby the portions of the beverage are reintroduced into thecollection trough of the cool beverage reservoir.
 15. The apparatusaccording to claim 14 wherein the flap member is sloped relative to asurface of the beverage in the collection trough.
 16. The apparatusaccording to claim 12 wherein the pump is oriented horizontally and ispositioned external to the cool beverage reservoir so that the pump isnot submerged in the beverage contained in the cool beverage reservoir.17. An integrated apparatus for brewing and cooling a beverage, theintegrated apparatus comprising: a hot water supply subsystem configuredto heat water to form hot water; a brewing subsystem configured toreceive and mix the hot water generated by the hot water supplysubsystem with a beverage additive to form a hot beverage; a heatexchanger configured to receive the hot beverage generated by thebrewing sub-system and cool the hot beverage to form a cooled beverage;and an air flow generator configured to generate a cooling air flowacross the outer surfaces of the heat exchanger.
 18. The integratedapparatus according to claim 17 further comprising a freezing subsystemconfigured to freeze the cooled beverage subsequent to exiting the heatexchanger.
 19. The integrated apparatus according to claim 18 furthercomprising: a first housing; the hot water supply subsystem, the brewingsubsystem, the heat exchanger, and the air flow generator located withinthe housing; a second housing, the first housing positioned atop thesecond housing; and the freezing subsystem located within the secondhousing.
 20. The integrated apparatus according to claim 19 wherein thebrewing subsystem comprises a brewing chamber; and wherein the firsthousing comprises a window in an upstanding wall of the housing thatforms a passageway into the brewing chamber; and wherein the brewingsubsystem comprises a dispensing nozzle, a coffee basket, and a filter.